Salt Lake Telegram | 1939-04-26 | Page 21 | Triple Prices Fixed for Copper as Two Firms Raise Quotations

Triple Prices Fixed for Copper As Two Firms Raise Quotations NEW TORK, April M CV-Ths, price of copper, under tbs Impetus of domeetio and foreif n buying; orders, or-ders, edited upward today sa twe levels. American Smelting and Refining company, which for three weeks has been leading a downward price movement, raised -Its pries "4 cent a pound, reentering; the 10 1, cents a pound level of most leading producers. pro-ducers. The action wss preceded, however, how-ever, by Phelps-Dodge corporation, a largs produoer, which Jumped Its pries 4t cent to 10 4e eenta a pound. As a result, for a tim. copper was quoted at 10, lOhi and 10 cents a pound. Establishment of a triangle price structure la the copper Industry presented a novel situation to the metals trsd. which was without parallsl, at least in recent years. Sines April I the pries of domestic do-mestic copper has been subject to unusual fluctuations and a two-way pries level much of the time. On that data American Smelting and Refining company lowered its price from 1144 cents (the MM high) .to 104 cents, in order. It was said, ta attract new business. Mssr producers. pro-ducers. Including Pbelpe-Dodge, held to the 11 ii cent level until a April 10, when a uniform quotation of 104 cents was eetabliehed. Two days later American Smelting Smelt-ing agsln took ths lead In lowering the price, this time to 10 H cents, and tha producers held to ths 104 cent prlos until April If, when all hands posted the lower figure. . The next dsy, April M, Calumet a Hoc la reduced Its selling price to 1014 cents and on ths following dsy American Smelting went others one better and began Bailing at 10 cents. On this lat.it move, however, producers pro-ducers did not concur and ths two-wsy two-wsy split remained until today, when the action of Phelps-Dodge further scrambled ths situation. Copper trade men who would discuss dis-cuss the situation said they believed ths step taken by Phelps-Dodge was ths result of a sudden burst of activity In ths foreign oopper market mar-ket over ths past two days, when large amounts of ths metal changed hands at gradually rising prices. Such transactions war. reported ' today an the basis of 10.0 to 10.12 cents a pound, cL(, European base ports. It wss recalled that prior ta the first break in the domestic pries structure oa April I foreign eopper hed been on the skids, selling at times mors than a full cent a pound under ths American quotation.