33^ IRON AND STEEL IN BRITAIN
TABLE 124
PRODUCTION OF WIRE ROD (ooo TONS)
Year Gnat Britain Germany U.S.A. France Belgium
1900 — 425 850 — —
1910 — 850 2,250 120 —
1915 170 700 3,050 — —
1920 260 500 3)15° I4° —
1925 200 950 2,850 420 260
3930 233 863 2,350 354 272
From 1890 onwards the U.S.A. has produced far and away the
greatest quantity of wire rods. German production increased steadily
up to 1913 and occupied the second place in the world order, which
it retained after recovery from the effects of the European War.
From 1925 to 1930 France was the third producer and British
output was comparable only with that of Belgium. The low position
of Britain in this trade was due to inability to compete with Con-
tinental rolled Bessemer steel, wire drawing being mainly carried
out in the Manchester and Birmingham areas from imported wire
rods.
TUBES
The production of tubes in Britain was not important enough to
be recorded as a separate item in the statistics of the N.F.I.S.M.
The output was considerably less than in Germany and about
equal to that of France. Scotland, South Wales and Midlands were
the areas engaged in tube drawing.
There were few firms engaged in tube production, which was
largely from imported strip. Exports were a considerable proportion
of production but often to British engineering firms working abroad.
There was an international cartel in tubes to which the British Tube
Association belonged.
WAGES
TABLE 125
PERCENTAGE COST OF WAGES
German Data (1896)
Cost per ton Wages Per cent
Marks Marks
Pig Iron 47-3 2-9 5-3
Steel Ingots 62-0 ağ2 3-5
Steel Rails 90-7 5*5 6-1