Lumber

Media

Part of The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

Title: Lumber
Creator: Reyes, Luis J.
Language: English
Source: The American Chamber of Commerce Journal Volume XXVII (Issue No.11) November 1951
Year: 1951
Rights
Fulltext: of commodities for resale. Exceeding $3,500,000 are funds thus far made available to over 70 Philippine firms in cluding the National Development Company and PRISCO. Commodities approved to date are: Raw cotton, nitro genous fertilizers, paper of various types, agricultural ma chinery-parts, motor vehicle engines and parts, caustic soda, soda ash, calcium carbide, paints, varnishes, pigments, unmanufactured leather, yarns, fish hooks, fish nets, and truck and tractor tires and tubes. The major portion of these shipments -should arrive during the first quarter of 1952. Additional funds are expected to be made available sometime after January 1. While Customs House investigations and re-arrangement has temporarily slowed document-clearance, there is still optimism that the general result will be a much easier and faster operation. Ocean Shipping and Exports By B. B. Tunold Secretary-Manager Associated Steamship Lines TOTAL exports for the month of September of this year showed a small increase over exports during September last year. 116 vessels lifted 308,025 tons of exports during the month, as compared to 259,122 tons, lifted by 94 vessels, during the same month last year. Commodities which registered sharp increases over last year’s figures for the same month, are: logs from 4,635,155 to 24,870,034 bft; molasses from 1,787 to 3,311 tons; chrome ore from 12,432 to 26,478 tons, and manga nese ore, from nil to 1,067 tons. Exports for September, 1951, as compared with exports during September, 1950, were as follows: Commodity 1951 1950 Alcohol.......................................... 79 tons 10 tons Beer................................................ 145 ” 25 ” Cigars and cigarettes................ 14 ” — Coconut, desiccated.................. 6,288 ” 14;863 ” Coconut oil.................................. 6,497 ” 10,666 . ” Concentrates, gold.................... 98 ” 442 ” Copra............................................ 81,015 ” 76,774 ’’ Copra cake/meal........................ 7,123 ” 5,233 ” Embroideries............................... 462 ” 285 ” Empty cylinders........................ 645 ” 343 ” Fish, salted.................................. 16 ” — Food stuff, preserved, N.O.S.. 11 ” — Furniture, rattan....................... 1,142 ” 1,039 tons Glycerine...................................... 286 ” 181 ” Gums, copal................................ 140 ” 164 ” Gums, elemi................................. 15 ” Hemp............................................ 86,686 bales 56,305 bales Household goods........................ 182 tons 667 tons Junk metals................................. 35 ” 6,885 ” Logs................................................ 24,870,034 bft. 4,635,155 bft. 11,460,688 ” Lumber.......................................... 4,751,678 ” Molasses....................................... 3,311 tons 1,787 tons Plywood and plywood pro ducts.......................................... 22 ” 57 ” Ores, chrome............................... 26,478 ” 12,432 ” Ores, iron...................................... 83,799 ” 65,229 ” Ores, manganese........................ 1,067 ” — Pineapples, canned.................... 3,166 ” 4,939 ” Rattan, palasan.......................... 137 ” 231 ” Rope.............................................. 397 ” 509 ” Rubber.......................................... 91 ” 52 ” Shell, shell waste........................ 27 ” 72 ” Shell buttons............................... 10 ” — Sugar cent/raw.......................... 9,850 ” 12,530 ” Tobacco......................................... 1,211 ” 1,112 ” Vegetable oil............................... 47 ” 54 ” Transit cargo............................... 851 ” 198 ” Merchandise, general............... 815 ” 472 ” Mining By Nestorio N. Lim Secretary, Chamber of Mines of the Philippines PHILIPPINE MINING PRODUCTION, SEPTEMBER, 1951 Atok-Big Wedge Mining Co., Inc............. 15,162 tons milled Value — P273.784.00 GOLD AND SILVER Balatoc Mining Company. . ................ Au Ag M.O. 7,959 oz. 5,549 ” 36,873 S.T. Benguet Consolidated Mining Co.... Au Ag M.O. 8,473 oz. 5,907 ” 35,589 S.T. Lepanto Consolidated Mining Co.... Au M.O. 2,806 oz. 28,660 S.T. Mindanao Mother Lode Mines, Inc. Au Ag M.O. 4,076 oz. 4,679 ” 9,700 S.T. Looc-Lead Silver...................................... Ag None Nor-Min Venture..................................... Au Ag Cu.Yd. 190 oz. 40 ” 26,500 Surigao Consolidated Mining Co., Inc............................................................. Au Ag M.O. 3,113 oz. 2,135 " 10,042 S.T. Surigao Placer............................................ Au Cu.yd. 248 45,000 Tambis Gold Dredging Co., Inc........ Au Cu.yd. 51 oz. 21,900 BASE METALS Consolidated Mines, Inc. (Ref. chro mite)........................................................................... 28,500 M.T. Lepanto Consolidated (Copper)........................... 951 M.T. Mindanao Mother Lode (Lead, copper).......... 40 M.T. Philippine Iron Mines (Iron)............................... 48,058 M.T. Marinduque Iron Mines (Iron)........................... 9,843 M.T. Surigao Consolidated (Zinc)................................. 22 M.T. —Compiled from Bureau of Mine* data. Lumber By Luis J. Reyes Philippine Representative, Penrod, Jtirden & Clark Co. OUR timber export for the month of September is about the same as that of the previous months. There was an increase of about 2,000,000 board feet in the volume of logs shipped to Japan, but to the United States and Canada the amount dropped down by about 1,500,000 board feet. The timber trade in the United States has been going through a recession since the spring of this year due to several causes brought about mainly by the Korean conflict. The demand for logs in Japan continues to be heavy and the quantity that can be shipped seems to be limited only by our capacity to produce the quantities and grades desired. There is less demand for the so-called “merchant able” logs which caused so much trouble during the past few months. 379 DISTRIBUTION OF LUMBER AND LOGS EXPORTED TO THE UNITED STATES FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER, 1951 BY REGION Lumber in Bd. Western States Eastern States SHIPPER Basilan Lumber Co., Inc........... 412,441 Bislig Bay Lumber Co., Inc.... 245,475 Dahican Lumber Co., Inc......... 680,743 Gen. Enterprises, Inc................... Gulf Lumber Co., Inc................. Insular Lumber Co., Inc............ 324,401 318,289 Jose S. Rico.................................... Marsman Development Co........ 172,604 36,500 Montenegro, Felix......................... Nasipit Lumber Co., Inc........... 266,583 315,843 Reynaldo Lumber Co.................. 89,375 Sta. Clara Lumber Co., Inc.... 170,463 Ft. All Others Logs in Bd. Ft. Western Eastern Gulf States States States Totals Gulf States 747,706 301,562 1,055,656 51,267 1,160,147 245,475 982,305 51,257 1,055,656 221,912 180,964 1,045,566 215,382 215,382 209,104 500,036 500,036 582,446 89,375 400,000 570,453 Totals........................................ 2,272,700 750,027 221,912 180,964 2,104,924 500,036 666,639 5,507,202 As released by the Bureau of Forestry, the volume of logs and lumber exported during the month of September was as follows: Shipper Destination V Lumber 'ol. in Bd.Ft. V Logs ol. in Bd.Ft. Agusan Timber Corp................... Japan 1,499,986 Anakan Lumber Co., Inc.......... Japan 1,199,995 Basilan Lumber Co., Inc........... U.S.A. 412,441 747,706 Bislig Bay Lumber Co., Inc.. . Japan U.S.A. 245,475 399,344 Arturo Soy....................................... Taiwan 954,506 Bureau of Prisons......................... Japan 750,403 Cagayan Lumber Co., Inc........ Japan 483,672 C. Luna Enterprises,-Inc........... Japan 625,340 Dahican Lumber Co., Inc......... U.S.A. 680,743 301,562 Domingo Abarro & Sons........... Japan 500,109 Elias Pacudao................................. Japan 1,178,717 Felix Montenegro.......................... U.S.A. 300,036 Francisco Boix............................... Japan 359,198 General Enterprises, Inc............. U.S.A. 51,257 Gulf Lumber Co., Inc................. U.S.A. 1,055,656 Hercules Lumber Co.................... Japan 1,095,487 Insular U.S.A. 1,045,566 Lumber Canada 78,986 _ Company, Eire 69,013 Inc............................ Hawaii 164,504 Jose S. Rico.................................... Belgium S. Africa U.S.A. 9,462 184,405 215,382 Marsman Development Com U.S.A. 209,104 pany ............................................... Japan 99,882 Misamis Lumber Co., Inc......... Japan ' 1,100,148 Nasipit Lumber Co., Inc........... U.S.A. 582,446 North Camarines Lumber Co., Inc.................................................. Japan 999,806 965,096 Pan Asiatic Commercial Co.... Japan Paniran Sawmill Co..................... Japan 352,140 Pata Sawmills................................. Japan 450,277 Reynaldo Lumber Co.................. U.S.A. 89,375 Sta. Cecilia Sawmills, Inc.......... Hawaii 45,410 Sta. Clara Lumber Co., Inc........ U.S.A. 170,453 400,000 Sta. Clara Lumber Co., Inc.... Japan 1,600,014 Surigao Timber Company......... Japan 753,632 West Mindanao Lumber Co.... Israel Japan 15,136 391,750 Woodcraft Works, Ltd................ Hongkong 200,181 Totals........................................ 4,185,564 18,842,037 Resume of exports to: Lumber Logs Japan........................................ 14,800,996 United States and Canada 3,722,503 3,071,599 Other countries..................... 463,061 969,442 In the local lumber markets prices dropped down price. They can not afford to close down for a month or two, as the small sawmills with 10 or 20 men generally • do when prices fall so low as to leave no margin for them. Scores of small mills supplying Manila are now closed until such time as they can again realize a profit. another P10 for tangile and P20 for apitong and lauan from the prices reported last month. Thus recent arrivals are sold as follows: tangile Pl60, apitong and white lauan Pl40. Some sales have been reported at prices lower than these, but such must have been distress transactions which at this time can take place. The only hope of producers is the coming of the dry season when the desire to start construction will again be aroused. Wide fluctuation in prices is disadvantageous to the bigger sawmills, which must carry on irrespective of market Copra and Coconut Oil By Kenneth B. Day President, Philippine Refining Company, Inc. September 16—October 15 THIS period, during the height of the copra season, was one of almost daily fluctuations both in copra and oil prices, until toward the end, when the general deterioration in international conditions resulted in a firmer tendency, more demand, and higher prices. While a good deal of copra was traded, oil demand was very limited and chiefly in driblets, particularly in the United States where millers had hoped for better things. The story is not a long one. From a start of $182.50 c.i.f. Pacific Coast, copra fluctuated its way up to $190 at the close. Actually a little business was done at $195 the second week in October. In Europe, the pattern was the same, and prices moved irregularly up from $213.50 per long ton c.i.f. at the start, to $225 at the close, with $227.50 recorded as the highest trade. During the period there was a steady and continued demand from West Germany for sterling-area copra, particularly from Singapore. This tightened up sterling markets to a point where offerings were difficult to obtain. Legitimate German demand has increased spectacularly this year. As so often happens, with improved outside markets, Philippine copra prices again achieved the doubtful distinc tion of being the world’s highest. A good deal of this condi tion was due to a heavily oversold position for September/ October shipment by two or three speculators who were forced to cover in their commitments at full prices. For tunately for them, supplies were adequate to take the edge off what might otherwise have been a run-away market. In Manila, local prices advanced from P32 to P35, and Cebu quotations were about the same or a shade higher. Coconut oil trading was spasmodic and difficult to gauge. Coast prices for tank cars f.o.b. ranged from 13-1/2/ per lb. at the beginning to 13-7/8/, sellers ideas, at the close, with highest reported sales 13-3/4/. Very little East Coast oil was sold, with prices advancing from 14-1/2 to 14-7/8 c.i.f. New York. Early in the period, a little dis tressed bulk oil was traded at 14/. Thereafter, sellers held for 14-1/2/ or better, which was too stiff a price to attract buying interest. Meanwhile European demand for oil was desultory, although normal quotations advanced overall from $315 to $330, with a few small parcels traded in between. 380
pages: 379-380