34 THECUBAREVIEW 



SUGAR REVIEW 



Speciall]/ written for The Cuba Review by Willett & Oray, New York, N. Y. 



^ Our last report was dated October 11th. Since that time, the market generally has been 

 quiet. Occasionally sales have been made to our refiners at 5^c. cost and freight and most of 

 these raw purchases were to be made into refined sugar for the use of either our Allies or our 

 ■own Army and Navy needs. 



The market has been entirely under the influence of the Food Administration, and the 

 different sugar committees connected therewith have been very diligent in endeavoring to 

 arrange matters so that the price of sugar to the wholesalers would not be any higher than 

 8.35c. less 2% for cane granulated sugar. To prevent any advance above this quotation 

 and to also prevent competition for the few sugars remaining in Cuba, the Food Administration 

 have requested the refiners to refrain from purchasing sugar, and as several of our refiners have 

 run out of raws, under these instructions they have, of course, been compelled to close down. 

 This closing, as well as the practical prohibition of buying has caused more or less of a sugar 

 scarcity throughout the East and granulated sugar has been difficult to buy, not only from the 

 refiners, but from wholesalers and retailers as well. Regulations were issued by the Food 

 Administration endeavoring to equalize conditions, but as none of these regulations increased 

 the supply of sugar, the situation has not improved. 



At one time the Food Administration had issued instructions to prohibit the manufacture 

 of all products containing sugar except condensed milk and other foods used by infants and 

 chUdren, but this caused such a protest from the other manufacturers that this regulation was 

 subsequently amended to allow the manufacturers of other goods to secure suppfies equal 

 to 50% of their normal working. 



A general agreement has been made between the sugar refiners and the Food Administra- 

 tion that the margin between raws and refined shall not exceed 1.30c. per 100 lbs., net. Whole- 

 salers cannot sell bulk granulated to retailers at more than 25c. above the refiners price. 



Mr. Rolph, the Chairman of the International Sugar Committee, has made a number of 

 announcements on various subjects and has held several open meetings with the sugar trade, 

 including the sugar brokers. 



On October 24th, Mr. Rolph, in order to relieve the stringency in raw sugars, endeavored 

 to secure a lot of refining grades in Louisiana, and the American Sugar Refining Co. consented 

 to take 100,000 tons of these sugars at 6.35c. delivered in New Orleans or at 6.10c. f. o. b. New 

 Orleans if for shipment to Northern Ports. This averaged the planter 6.22 3^c. for his sugar. 

 However, owing to the crop outturning considerably less in yield than was expected, and owing 

 to a severe freeze, the Louisiana crop has been considerably shortened, and estimates 

 have been reduced 50,000 tons to 225,000 tons. Owing to this unfortunate state of 

 affairs, the largest quantity that the planters were able to tender against the 100,000 tons, 

 was approximately 25,000 tons. Furthermore, after a period of uncertainty in regard to the 

 price at which clarified sugar could be sold, it was finally settled by the Food Administration 

 that these sugars could not be sold at a better price than 7.2oc. less 2% f. o. b. New Orleans. 

 As 6.35c. was fixed as the price of raw sugars, and as a better profit could be made by making 

 washed or clarified sugars, the planters naturally turned their attention to the manufacture 

 of the ^washed sugars. Besides the 25,000 tons sold to the American, the Henderson and 

 Colonial refineries at New Orleans secured some 15,000 tons between them, all at 6.35c. basis 

 96° test, delivered at New Orleans. 



The Cuba crop of 1916-17 finally ended with an outturn of 3,023,720 tons— and on October 

 26th, Willett & Gray published their first estimates of the cane sugar crops for the 1917-18 

 campaign. The principal crops have been estimated as follows: 



Cuba 3,200,000 tons 



Domestic beet 875,000 tons 



Porto Rico 475,000 tons 



Hawaii 575,000 tons 



Louisiana 225,000 tons 



