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THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN. 37
THE PULSE OF THE MARKETS.
A general improvement in the coal trade with
considerably more firmness and in some eases a
rise in prices has taken place within the last fortnight.
The resumption of many large industries
has been mainly responsible for the change and
the approach of cooler weather partially so. The
improvement has been in no sense extensive.
It is merely the normal healthy trend of the
business toward the better conditions which begin
to be effective at this time of the year. It is
not improbable, however, that another thirty days
will see an improvement as great as transportation
conditions will allow. On this point muc'i
depends. With the big crop shipments about to
begin and the railroads little above their usual
standard of capacity to meet heavy demands there
is every prospect of the usual fall and winter
car shortage, the effect of which will be even
worse than usual if bad weather sets in early.
Despite all the talk of big reserve supplies of
coal there is actually very little coal in storage
Last fall there was considerably more than at
present. In addition fine weather prevailed
until early in December, but nobody saw fit to
stock up on coal. Then came simultaneously a
heavy demand, a pinching car shortage and a
long period of bad rail haulage and general transportation
conditions. There was a fine scramble
on the part of consumers to obtain sufficient ,o'il
for their needs and tne majority considered themselves
fortunate in being able to get day-to-day
supplies at high prices. At present, there is every
indication of an even worse state of affairs during
the last quarter of this year and the first three
months of next. The price of coal is low—lower
than it is likely to be again in a long time—and
transportation conditions are good. The opportunity
cannot last a great while, yet consumers.
as usual, are buying only for present needs.
Somebody is going to suffer before the winter is
over and it will not be the producers. The improvement
in the market has not yet extended
itself to the West and Southwest. There is practically
a congestion in Chicago caused by the
over-supply of western coal. Consumption is
barely normal and it is as impossible as ever to
force a market for the excess Illinois and Indiana
coal streaming in. The eastern coals show to
better advantages but some of them, even are
weak. In St. Louis and the southwest the customary
late summer stagnation prevails with little
prospects of a change for the better. The coal
trade, like other business is at a standstill in
the extreme South and the Mississippi valley as
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