THE CUBA R E \' I E W 



SUGAR REVIEW 



Specially Written for The Cuba Review by Willett & Gray, of New York 



Our last review for this magazine was dated January 11, T.i];2. 



At that time centrifugals 96 degree test were quoted at 4.42c. per pound, at New 

 York, duty paid, and are now 4.735c. per pound. In the meantime, the market showed 

 a further slight decline to 4.39c. per pound, from which point the trend turned upward, 

 and has steadily continued rising until the present time, when quotations are 4.735c. 

 per pound, showing an advance of 34 %c. per 100 pounds. 



At the low point of the market, Cuban sellers were at 86c. per 100 pounds below 

 the parity of European beet sugars, but the following advance has brought the two 

 markets together to the present parity of 63 ^/^c. per 100 lbs. 



From various indications, this parity may continue to be reduced until it finally reaches 

 the duty preference at 20 per cent below foreign markets by slow degrees, depending 

 more or less upon the indications which point to a larger or smaller crop than our 

 present estimate of 1,800,000 tons for Cuba. 



The European beet sugar market reached its low point on the date of our last report 

 at 14s. 7i/^d. for beet sugar, from which point it made the following fluctuations: to 

 15s. 8^/4d. (January 19th), reacted to 15s. on January 23d, rising to 15s. 3%d on January 

 29th, declining to 14s. 10% d. February 3d, and then continuing steadily to advance to 

 16s. on February 13th, and finally closing at 15s. 9d. The reaction at the close is caused 

 by the settlement by the Brussels Convention of the Russian Export Contingent, the 

 effect of which has evidently been over-discounted. This convention decided on the 

 14th inst. to permit Russia to increase its export in 1912, from 200,000 to 350,000 tons, 

 and a further 100,000 tons additional exports spread over the following years. The 

 convention also agreed to extend its existence for five years from September 1, 1913, 

 on the same terms as before, permitting Russia to export westward 200,000 tons annually 

 during that period. This question being now out of the way, the future of the market 

 depends upon the outturn of the Cuba crop. 



While the receipts from this crop up to the present time are materially less than 

 during the same period of the large crop of 1910, yet we do not consider this fact 

 a sure indication that the crop is to finally prove less than the present estimate of 

 1,800,000 tons. There may be special reasons why sugars are being kept back on the 

 estates, and not appearing at the shipping ports as rapidly as in the former year. 



The latest revised estimate of the European beet crop is 6,270,000 tons, against 8,105,126 

 tons last year, showing a decrease of 1,835,126 tons. Under the circumstances of the 

 very apparent short supplies for the United Kingdom, we thought it well to ask our 

 London friends for an estimate of the amount that the United Kingdom might require 

 from the present Cuban crop, and their reply received this day estimates such re- 

 quirements at 180,000 tons. 



The only other important matter requiring particular notice in our report is the tarifif 

 bill now being discussed liy the Committee on Ways and Means in the House of Repre- 



Valvula de Escape" LYTTON" 



Hecha para operar continuamente y dar buen 

 servicio. 



El asiento y disco enteramente protegidos cuando 

 abierta. Ambos se pueden quitar y poner. 



SIEMPRE QUEDA AJUSTADA 



LYTTON MANUFACTURING CORPORATION 



< Iticina para la Wnta : 



1159 Hudson Terminal Building, New York, N. Y. 



Oficina Principal y Talleres: Franklin. \'a. 

 Agente en Cuba: J. E. Hernanrlez, .Xgnacate 56, Habana, Cuba. 



