1334

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

December 24, 1914.

To

Coblenz and above
He ow Coblenz ...
Ho land .........
Belgium .........
France ...........
Other destinations

Total.........

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

THE GERMAN AND AUSTRIAN COAL
AND IRON TRADES.

We give before further extracts fiom German
periodicals that have reached us, showing the course of
the coal and iron trades in Germany and Austria:—

Siegerland Iron Ore and Iron Market.

According to the Kulnische Zeitung, the first four
months of war have shown that the economic and
financial condition of the Sb gerland iron industry
justifies hopefulness, even if the struggle be protracted.
Whilst some branches have suffered considerably, others
ate well occupied in profitable work. The general
situation shows little change. Prices for Siegerland ore
and foreign manganese ironstone are firm. The Iron-
stone Union has just fixed the sales for the first quarter
of 1915, and has raised the pi ice of roasted ore by
10 mk. per 10 tons, ex mine ; and higher prices for raw
ore and btown ironstone are also asked. These
advances will enable the mines to bear the increased
working costs due to the war, though they are adverse
to the interests of the ironmasters, who have to sell
their pig to the Pig Iron Union at the old rates. It is
reported that the consumption of ironstone from the
Lahn, Dill and other districts—except such as is high
in manganese—is suffering further diminution, and that
no red ironstone from the Schelde and Dill valleys will
be used in 1915.

With regard to the pig iron market, the last meeting
of the Union reported the October distribution to be
49 09 per cent., as compared with 49 71 per cent, in
September. Prices up to the end of March next are
left unchanged, except for haematite pig, for which more
expensive ores are required. This will be satisfactory
to the foundries, but those which cannot do without
haematite have now to pay as much as 93 mk. per metric
ton, ex Oberhausen. The demand for certain grades of
pig for military purposes is causing some scarcity, and
the small producers are sold out. In the semi-manu-
factured market, the restricted output cannot be fully
marketed, owing to slackness of work in the rolling
mills; and as theie is little prospect of improvement,
working for stock is general. Prices for crude slabs
and cogged mild steel are not inconsiderably lower than
those of the Steelworks Union ; and it is presumed that
these latter will be reduced at the next meeting, as, at
present, they leave no profit on finished rolling-mill
products. In the scrap iron market, middlemen have
been actively engaged in covering their spring require-
ments, but holders of stocks have been keeping back in
the expectation of an early rise in rates. Ordinary
core scrap has latterly been quoted at 43-44 mk., and
fresh works scrap at 45-47 mk., prices which are much
below last year’s level. Business in plates is irregular,
in spite of the reduced output; and most of the small
mills have little to do, though the big works, especially
those making best marks, are running such of their mills
as are at work full time This is on account of the
prices, 130-135 mk. being asked for best fine plates,
whei eas ordinary commercial brands only fetch 125 mk.
and under. The heavy plate mills are short of orders,
and rates are easy, about 115 mk. being accepted for
contracts up to next spring. Exports of black plate are
confined to neutral countries, so that earlier deliveries
can be obtained in the home market. The tin-plate
market is firm, and the article in good demand. Bar
iron is still depressed, with little prospect of improve-
ment, and satisfactory prices are difficult to obtain.
Holders of stocks report sales very small.

Ruhr Goal Market.

The conditions in November remained as favourable
as in the previous month, enquiries for house coal being
still more pressing and the demand for industrial coals
again general. Every buyer was striving to obtain as
much as in ordinary years, and asking for his usual
grades of fuel, or as near like them as possible—a
request impossible to grant, especially in the case of
nuts. On the other hand, the prospects of any increase
in the output are remote, owing to the calling up of the
Landsturm who have already served. Stockyards on
the Upper Rhine are becoming seriously depleted, and
it is highly probable that the Ruhr district will be
called on to make good the deficiency in the Saar
output. Substitute grades are lacking, the only kinds
available in place of gas coal being bituminous small
and coking coals. Anthracite is extremely scarce and
likely to continue so, and it is considered desirable that
the price of broken coke I. and II. should be consider-
ably reduced in order to induce consumers to take them
instead. Broken coke II. is alike scarce, as is also the
case with locomotive coals. There is a great scarcity of
skilled coal loaders in the Ruhr harbours, and craft
have to be shifted from one basin to another in order to
get them loaded without working overtime. This
causes much delay, as there are not sufficient tugs
available for the work. The colliery harbours below
Ruhroit are full of craft, which, however, cannot be
loaded promptly because of the reduced output of the
pits. Coal shipments to Belgium are recovering slowly,
and there is a good demand from Holland for house
coal, gas, industrial and bunker coals, but loading is
delayed for lack of supplies.

Coal Market in Upper Silesia.

Owing to the shortage of railway wagons since
October, the pits have been compelled to lay up stocks,
and also to work short time, the consequence being
that fuel is in very great request by consumers. In
some cases, municipal gasworks have been in great
straits to keep up a supply of gas at all. The cokeries
have been able to get in supplies by their narrow-gauge
railways, and thus maintain the output, whilst the
freshly made and stocked coke has found a ready sale.
Among by-products, benzol is in good request for
military purposes, and there is no longer any question

of what is to be done with the large stocks of this
commodity.

Report of the Steel Works Union.

The annual report laid before the general meeting
of Stahlwerksverband of Dusseldorf states, with reference
to semi-manufactured goods, that a number of inland
consumers who were obliged to stop work owing to
traffic difficulties have gradually resumed operations,
but, nevertheless, the prospect of any substantial
increase in-the home demand for finished products
cannot be expected. Contracts for the first quarter of
1915 have been concluded on the old prices and
conditions. A few large parcels have been sold to
neutral countries. In railway materials, the Bavarian
and Saxon State railways have given out their orders,
as well as those of the Prussian railways for small iron
materials. Large contracts have been concluded with
neutral countlies, and others are in prospect. The
demand for pit rails increased in November, and many
pits have already placed their orders for the coming
year. The market, both home and foreign, for tram
rails, has improved. Home orders for sections have
fallen off owing to the season and the stagnation in
building. Existing prices and conditions are to be
maintained for the next quarter. Orders from neutral
countries are smaller than in September and October,
when there was need to replenish stocks. The total
distribution of raw steel for the year ending June 30
last amounted to 6,124,310 tons (6,514,081 tons). The
inland demand for semi - manufactured products
slackened, so that in each of the closing quarters of 1913
prices were lowered by 5 mk. The foreign market was
not bad. English buyers in particular being busy, and
also taking large parcels of corrugated sheets and
tinplate, though after the spring trade requirements
were curtailed, except for bridge and structural
materials. The total distribution of semi-manufactured
products was 1,639,829 tons(1,824,044tons), 5413 percent.
(61’97 per cent.) of which went to the home market, and
45 87 per cent. (38’03 per cent) abroad. The various State
railways placed increased orders for rails, sleepers and
small materials; and the sales of pit rails were about
equal to those in the previous year, though the foreign
demand suffered a decline, especially as legards South
America, the prices being likewise strongly affected by
the keen competition of English and Belgian makers.
In railway superstructural material 2,748,728 tons
(2,613,032 tons) were disposed of, 68’36 per cent. (68’94
per cent.) being for home consumption, and 31’64 per
cent. (31’06 per cent.) for export. Sections did not find
such a ready sale as in the preceding year, the distribu-
tion being only 1,735,753 tons (2,077,005 tons), of which
75’07 per cent. (70’59 per cent.) were for the home
market, and 24’93 per cent. (29’41 per cent.) for abroad.
Up to the spring the demand was poor, but a revival set
in, both from home and foreign consumers, especially
Great Britain.

Upper Silesian Coal Convention.

It is reported from Breslau that the increase in coal
prices, fixed by the convention to come into operation on
January 1, will not exceed 0’50 to 1 mk. per ton.

German Pig Iron Output in October.

The German Iron and Steel Makers’ Association gives
the output of pig iron during October as 729,841 tons
(against 580,087 tons in September and 586,661 tons in
August) including—foundry pig, 177,390 tons (116,946
tons and 98,401 tons); Bessemer pig, 5,891 tons (16,144
tons and 23,162 tons); basic pig, 406,833 tons (325,086
tons and 349,886 tons); steel and spiegeleisen, 113,578
tons (108,835 tons and 100,305 tons); puddling pig,
29,149 tons (13,076 tons and 14,907 tons. The produc-
tion of the various districts was as follows : Rhenish-
W estphalia, 386,296 tons (353,389 tons and 363,444 tons);
Siegerland, Wetzlar and Hesse - Nassau, 39,086 tons
(31,329 tons and 28,603 tons); Silesia, 60,736 tons
(49,322 tons and 48,269 tons); North German coast,
13,940 tons (13,356 tons and 14,068 tons) ; Central
Germany, 29,696 tons (25,820 tons and 23,117 tons);
South Germany and Thuringia, 13,937 tons (12,844 tons
and 16,201 tons); Saar district, 44,047 tons (24,752 tons
and 22,543 tons); Lothringen, 74,678 tons (42,315 tons
and 25,249 tons); Luxemburg, 67,425 tons (29,960 tons
and 45,167 tons). The total production for January-
October amounted to 12,746,729 tons, against 16,108,937
tons last year, a deficiency of over 31 million tons.

German Steel Output in October.

Total production 900,201 tons (663,223 tons in Sep-
tember and 566,822 tons in August), including: Basic,
427,551 tons (264,399 tons and 258,534 tons); Bessemer,
9,675tons (7,300tons and 7,771 tons); basic open hearth,
413,417 tons (347,093 tons and 258,776 tons); basic cast
steel, 12,982 tons (12,481 tons and 11,909 tons); acid,
5,410 tons (5,424 tons and 4,466 tons; crucible, 9,131
tons (7,819 tons and 8,124 tons); electric, 4.666 tons
(3,322 tons and 2,810 tons). Of the above total, 580,546
tons (501,493 tons and 436,795 tons) were produced in
Rhenish - Westphalia ; 82,975 tons (61,329 tons and
55,636 tons) in Silesia; 22,773 tons (17,941 tons and
8,136 tons) in Siegerland; 38,497 tons (35,201 tons and
24,359 tons) in North, East and Mid-Germ any ; 18,826
tons (18,457 tons and 13,610 tons) in Saxony; 6,737 tons
(6,183 tons and 7,362 tons) in South Germany; 72,304
tons (8,372 tons and 6,228 tons) in Saar and Pfalz dis-
tricts ; 40,257 tons (6,326 tons and 2,874 tons) in Elsass-
Lothringen, and 37,286 tons (7,921 tons and 11,822 tons)
in Luxemburg.

German Exports of Coal to Italy.

During October, 27,306 tons of German coal were
sent to Italy ovei' the Gothard railway, as compared
with 43,235 tons, but it is noticeable that consignments
from the Ruhr district rose from 11.699 tons to 23.549
tons. There is now a deficit of 124.484 tons in this
traffic for the year so far completed, of which 73,296
tons occurred during the war months.

Traffic in the Rhine Harbours in October.

In October the total shipments by water from the
Rhine harbours were as follow :—

October. January-October.

^1913.	1914."^ r~1913.	1914.^

Tons. Tons. Tons. Tons.

738.660..	.690.019... 8,015,961... 6,428,103

19,026... 13,780... 201/40...	238,359

637.477..	.214.641... 5,776,482... 5,193,760
335,H3... 4,500... 3,569,822.. 2,728,791

32.734..	. — ... 337,932... 277,434

39.973..	. 10,929... 337,421... 273,218

1,802,9.3...934,369.. 18,239,258.. 15,139,664

Of the total, 577,510 tons were shipped from Ruhrort
and 171,399 tons from Duisburg. During the four
months August to October inclusive, 2,128,459 tons
have been shipped from the Ruhr harbours, as against
5,649,886 tons in the corresponding period of 1913.
Shipments to Holland amounted to 421,529 tons
(1,914,044 tons), and those to Belgium to 25,617 tons
(1,048,412 tons).

Rhenish-Westphalian Coal Syndicate.

It has been decided to leave the settling prices of
blastfurnace coke and coking coal unchanged during
the first quarter of next year. Further, that the price
of coals and briquettes should be uniformly raised 2 mk.
per ton, whilst coke is to be reduced mk. per ton.
The new prices are valid from April 1 to August 31.
The Kolnische Zeitung adds that the rise in the price of
coals and briquettes has been caused by the substantial
rise in the cost of production and of materials especially.
The proportionate output remains at 65 per cent,
for coal, as before, 30 per cent, for coke (274 per
cent.), and 80 per cent, for briquettes (75 per cent.)
The calculated distribution of coal in November
was 4,600,119 tons (6,036,509 tons in November
1913), or 191,672 tons (261,038 tons) per working
day. This amounted to 65’29 per cent, of the participa-
tion (88’90 per cent). The total distribution of the
syndicate pits was 3,309,342 tons (4,388,183 tons) of
coal, 548,466 tons (807,797 tons) of coke, and 335,807
tons (320,705 tons) of briquettes. The quantity of
coal raised in the month was 5,573,293 tons (7,801,858
tons) or 239,721 tons (337,377 tons) per working day; in
October 6,041,509 tons were raised, or 223,760 tons per
working day.

German Company Reports.

Siemens Schuckert werke G.m.b.H., Berlin. — The
annual reports state that the profits would have again
enabled a 10 per cent, dividend to be paid, but owing to
the caution entailed by the war it has been thought
advisable to distribute 74 per cent. Out of the n t
profits of 11,496,104 mk. (13,847,970 mk.) 2A million mk.
have been placed to reserve, 1| million mk. paid as
bonuses to the staff, and 245,104 mk. (347,970 mk.)
carried forward.

Harpener Bergbau A.G., Dortmund— The year 1913-14
closed with a total profit of 25’32 (30’87) million mk.,
including 22’78 (28’43) million mk. from coal, coke,
briquettes, the shipping department and the tar plant;
I’ll (1’02) million mk. from rent of houses and land;
875,411 mk. (981,383 mk.) from interest, dividends and
share of profits; 100,000 mk. from the Mulheimer
Bergwerksverein; 36,532 mk. (35,977 mk.) from the
structural iron department; 55,366 mk. (45,718 mk.)
from the brickworks; and 261,000 mk. the forward
balance from the previous year. On the other hand,
general expenses absorbed 5’67 (5’88) million mk.;
upkeep of house property, 378,875 mk. (378,950 mk.);
schools, 42,303 mk. (44,612 mk.) ; children’s homes,
20,940 mk. (19,922 mk.); and workmen’s library,
7,433 mk. (5,681 mk.). After applying 250,000 mk. for
social purposes, 100,000 mk. to school building,
500,000 mk. (250,000 mk.) to reconstructing railway
sidings, 150,000 mk. to fire insurance reserve, 900,000 mk.
for compensation (damage done by mining operations),
289,274 mk. for depreciation in securities, and writing
off 7,509,636 mk. (7,421,363 mk.), there remained a net
profit of 9,500,235 mk. (10,340,987 mk.). This is
sufficient to pay a dividend of 10 percent. (11 percent.),
but the actual distiibution was not stated until the
general meeting on the 19th inst. The business of the
company is stated to be seriously affected by the war,
25 | er cent, of the staff having been called up to serve.
This caused the output to decline in August to 55 per
cent, of that of the previous month, but in October it
recovered to 72 per cent, of the normal figures, the
calling up of the 7th army corps of the Landsturm
having been stopped in the interests of the economic
existence of the country.

Bochumer Verein f. Bergbau und Gussstahlfabrikation,
Bochum.—From the gross profit of about 9 8 (8’9)
million mk., 4 (2’5) million mk. have been written off,
leaving a net profit of 5’8 (6’42) million mk. Out of
this it has now been decided to set aside 1J million mk.
for depreciation in securities, outstanding accounts, &c.,
the dividend being reduced, in consequence, to 10 per
cent. (14 per cent.).

Elektrizitdtswerke. A.G., Schuckert und Co., Nurem-
burg.—The gross profits amounted to 8.257,807 mk.
(0,692,622 mk.) plus a forward balance of 1,275,588 mk.
Management expenses, taxes and writing off absorbed
3,335,253 mk. (3.553.493 mk.). and 100.000 mk. have been
placed to coupon tax reserve, leaving a net profit of
6,098,142 mk. (7,296,476 mk.). In view of the situation
created by the war, it is proposed to reduce the dividend
from 8 to 64 per cent.

Rheinische Schuckert - Gesellschaft f. Elektrische
Industrie, Mannheim.—The board proposes to reduce
the dividend from 8 per cent, to 5 per cent. Out of the
net profit of 1,138.212 mk. (1,132.589 mk.), 200,000 mk.
(200.000 mk.' are placed to special reserve. 100.000 mk.
(28.867 mk.) to employees' benevolent iund, and
363,212 mk. (351,869 mk.) carried forward.