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Moving the tin mountain
Author(s) -
Kettle Peter G.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
natural resources forum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.646
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1477-8947
pISSN - 0165-0203
DOI - 10.1111/j.1477-8947.1989.tb00854.x
Subject(s) - tin , production (economics) , competition (biology) , natural resource economics , work (physics) , consumption (sociology) , economics , agricultural economics , business , microeconomics , chemistry , ecology , engineering , organic chemistry , sociology , biology , mechanical engineering , social science
The recent history of the tin market has been characterized by competition between newly mined production and old surplus stocks against a background of declining demand. Because the control of surplus stocks has been unpredictable, prices have been volatile. Following the failure of the International Tin Council in 1985, mine production has fallen and demand has increased. Because mine production is quite price inelastic, continued growth in consumption may in due course result in a substantial rise in prices. Development and promotional work by tin producers could therefore bring them substantial benefits.