THE METAL WAR WITH GERMANY

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 158, 29 March 1919, Page 11

THE METAL WAR WITH GERMANY

ALLIES ORGANISED

Tlio removal of Government control from tho base metals mid tho consequent fall in their prices is regarded in l>usinoss circles as a preliminary to tho cornin.' stiwglo between the Allies and ucrninny (says the'"Daily Mail"), There is not likely to bo uioro competition in the'homo metal trades than tiiero was before the war. That competition, as before will l>o mainly between the members of the -Metal Exchange. But now Hie work of financing and organising the industry will bo in the hands of the British -Metals Corporation, which, with its capital of Ji0.000.000, of which .£2,000.000 has alreadv been paid up, was recently formed for tho purpose, bmiilav organisations liavo been fornied m other Allied countries. A suggestion at the Paris Conference was that the Allies should act in absolute unison, through one groat internal ional company, but it was ultimately' decided to act in • :cooppratiuii through national companies. Thus, in France, two companies are to | act one the Soeiele Mimcre et Metnux, with a capital of 10,000,000 francs (JitOO,000), and the other, as yet unregistered, with a capital of between 40 and 50 million francs, sav, £1,800,000. The latter will attend specially to the diihculties or the transition period, and when that is over the two will bo united. In the United States the Morton firm had a largo holding in the American Metal Company, which is now in charge 'of the Custodian of Enemy Property. The holding is valued at about £750,000. An attempt to form a syndicate to-lake over this Morton holding was disallowed, but it will doubtless pass to American interests. There has just been formed in the United States a Central Export Association for copper wl.icn will handle the whole of the export trade and thus eliminato competition.- A similar organisation was formed in Australia for coppor,' lead, >anc,. and soon three years ago, and it is probable that: such organisations, may be. formed in, Britain and elsewhere. . The National- . Metal and ' Chemical Bank, formed in London this year, lias been established independently to oust German influence. It is associated witn» a number of big enterprises in tho South Wales district.

. Loss to Germany.. Germany has still control i.vor metal supplies m neutral countries, but her chief sources of power, m the industry have been taken lrom her, in theory, ax all events, by these organisations ol the. Allies. Tho practical test has still, of course, to come. The British Metals Corporation has not secured direct}}- the Merton asses in England. They consisted mainly ot the control'of Williams, Foster, and Co., and Pascoo, Groufell, and Sons, ami this control has been acquired )>}\tho Central Mining Company. But the Central Mining Company has one of the taxgest participations, <C20Q,000, in the British Metals Corporation. An even larger partici-pator-in. tho British Metals Corporation is tho-great copper-producing company the liioTinto/which has a holding, ot •'"'so 000 Olilier important paa-ticipi-toVin tho corporation ore Messrs. Mortmv Groufell, and Co., and many of the investment trust compamea, especially Uioso of Mr. Hubert Momiugs S™«P; Anion- tho directors of the British Metals Corporation are many strong men of financo/ The chairman is Mi-., Charles Vincent Salo, merchant and shipowner,with largo interests in Japan and deputygovernor of tho Hudson's The managing director is Mr.vecilßudd, tho head of tho firm of Vivian ■younger and Bond, whose name is a household word wherever copper is dealt in. Utlicr well-known motal experts on the board are Mr. AVillinm Tcnnant and Mr. Andrew Tait, of tho British Aluminium Company., Sir Lionel Phillips the great South African power, is .also on' the board, and the British Government has th« right to nominate a director nt all times. It is claimed for the British. Metals Corporation that it will represent tho producer, the manufacturer, and the consumer of metals alike.