match the 3.1-mill tab but can't guarantee the availability of power at any given time at that price. The cost would lie somewhere between 4 and 5 mills for less interruptible supply, Utah Power says. The ofttimes stormy hearings on the matter have dragged on for more than two years. Commission officials are now sifting the masses of evidence before them. A decision is reportedly near as to which power supplier will be certificated. Of course, it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that the electrolysis plant may be built elsewhere if a favorable power rate isn't forthcoming for the site now selected.
Chemical stocks rally, in wake of good earnings reports Spurred on by some surprisingly good first-quarter financial reports, chemical stocks joined the recent market upsurge with a gusto many thought they no longer possessed. After a hesitant start following President Johnson's dramatic announcement of his efforts for peace in our time, chemical stock picked up confidence during the second week of the rally to equal, and in some cases outperform, industrial stocks generally. However, Wall Street analysts, are still not getting very excited about long-depressed chemicals. They see little long-term significance to this burst of good performance. "Basic chemical stocks are still in the doldrums," according to Reginald Oliver, financial analyst for Pershing & Co. "Too many of them are still under pressure," adds Harvey Storch, chemical analyst with Argus Research Corp. And Fahnestock & Co. analyst John Round points out that chemical stocks have been in a six- or seven-year bear market and that they are not going to get popular all of a sudden. Between close of business on March 29 and close of business on April 15 the C&EN stock price index for the Big Seven chemical makers gained 11.9% and the C&EN index for 21 other chemical makers added 7.1%. In the same period, Standard and Poor's index of 425 industrials recorded a 7.3% gain and the Dow Jones Industrials average showed an 8.3% boost. Between March 27 and April 10 Standard and Poor's index for 12 chemicals gained 6.9%, the same as the gain in the S&P 425 industrials for the period. The key earnings report that helped trigger the gains in chemical stocks was that of Du Pont. At the company's annual meeting on Monday April 8, president Charles B. McCoy predicted that earnings for the first 12 C&EN APRIL 22, 1968
Chemical stock prices pull ahead in stock market surge Per cent change since March 29 C&EN Big Seven index*
April 1
2 3 4 5 8 10 11 15
+2.3 + 1.6 +2.0 +2.7 +2.1 +4.6 +7.1 +8.5 + 11.9
C&EN 21 other index
+0.5 +0.2 +0.1 +0.4 -0.1 +2.8 +4.5 +6.1 +7.1
*Big Seven chemical companies are Allied Chemical, American Cyanamid, Celanese, Dow, Du Pont, Monsanto, and Union Carbide.
quarter of 1968 would be about 20% above earnings for the first quarter of 1967. He also predicted increased sales and earnings for the year. "This gave all the chemical stocks a lift," according to Mr. Round. The C&EN 21 other index had not moved during the first week of the rally, but following this news it gained 6% during the abbreviated three-day trading week starting April 8. On April 15 Du Pont released final figures for the quarter putting net earnings at $97 million, based on existing federal income taxes. This is some 24% more than the $78 million earned in the year earlier period. Other fiber makers to come through with timely financial reports during the rally were American Enka and Celanese. Enka reported a 46% boost in first-quarter net earnings. Celanese stock hit a new low for the year after the market rally started, but release of a 14% boost in first-quarter earnings over the first quarter of 1967 shot the stock from 5 3 7 / 8 to 6 0 3 / 4 within four trading sessions. In spite of these advances, there are many reasons why Wall Street is still unexcited about chemicals. For one thing, as Mr. Oliver points out, the recent advance is too narrow, based too much on fiber makers. Mr. Storch points out that first-quarter earnings are still a mixed bag. For instance, Monsanto's earnings are off 6% and Allied's off 14% from a year ago. Mr. Round of Fahnestock does point to one slightly encouraging thing about chemical stocks. He says that they have finally got to a point where all their earlier glamor has been eliminated from their price-earnings ratios. Hence they should now be responsive to good news and should perform at least as well as the market generally, instead of much worse as has mostly been the case in recent years.
Carbide licenses Lummus to offer PVC processes Union Carbide has licensed Lummus to design, engineer, and build a range of integrated processes based on Carbide polyvinyl chloride technology. Lummus president James F. Thornton says the worldwide licensing agreement between his company and Carbide makes it possible for the first time for industry to acquire Carbide's highly successful commercial operating data and associated technology for the building of vinyl chloride monomer and suspension polyvinyl chloride resins plants. Lummus also offers the Wulff process (as does Fluor Corp.) in cooperation with Union Carbide. The Wulff process can produce acetylene and ethylene in a one-to-one molar ratio—a requirement for a balanced vinyl chloride plant. Mr. Thornton says the agreement provides for licensing of three Union Carbide processes—direct chlorination of ethylene to ethylene dichloride, pyrolysis of ethylene dichloride to vinyl chloride, and hydrochlorination of acetylene to vinyl chloride. Lummus lists some highlights of the processes: • The patented Carbide ethylene chlorination process occurs in a fractionating tower, minimizing catalyst handling problems, Lummus says. • T h e ethylene dichloride cracking process has been operating successfully for many years. • The acetylene ' hydrochlorination process greatly reduces plant investment and operating costs compared with conventional plants. • Union Carbide's PVC technology
Lummus Co.'s Thornton First time
