The Prices of Chemicals

Abstract

WE are in receipt of your letter of February 8 with regard to the price of dulcite and adonite. We very much regret that your correspondent has not gone more fully into the matter before making charges against firms who are trying to help British industries at a critical time. We should welcome a visit from your correspondent as he may not know the difficulties which have been experienced in obtaining the raw material for the manufacture of dulcite. Dulcite originally was a by-product, and was sold at 4s. 6d. per oz. The price before the war rose in stages from 4s. 6d. to 15s., then to 25s., then to 35s., and finally to 45s. per oz., which was the price ruling on August 1. We had at that time only a small stock of both dulcite and adonit consisting of about 8 oz. We purchased a further supply of both these chemicals on or about August 18, but at considerably advanced prices, the supplies being obtained from wholesale chemical merchants in this country. We thereupon raised our prices to 100s. per oz. in the case of dulcite and 36s. per oz. for adonite; this gave us the same rate of profit as we had obtained from dulcite and adonite before the war.