MINERALS IN THE WORLD ECONOMY—1991  9this share was very near the
recent
year record low of 19.0% reached in 1988. Comparable 1991 figures were not
available in time for inclusion here, but it is expected that the mineral
commodity share of the total will be little altered from that of 1990. 
Having noted the upturn in the total value of export trade in mineral commodities
in 1988-90, it appears important to reflect on the differences in performance
between the country group including the former U.S.S.R. and the former centrally
planned economy states of Eastern Europe and the groups that include other
world areas. Although table 8 demonstrates the substantial growth in global
export trade values from 1986 to 1991, it should be understood that the recorded
growth rates are by no means universal. Between 1989 and 1990, for example,
the global growth in the value of mineral commodity exports was 8.4%, but
the former U.S.S.R. and the former centrally planned economy countries of
Eastern Europe in aggregate showed a decline of more than 5.8%, while the
rest of the world logged an increase of more than 10.3 % . Between 1988 and
1989, an increase of 1 1 . 1 % was recorded for global mineral exports, but
the former U.S.S.R. and East European countries logged a decrease of almost
5.7 % , while the rest of the world achieved an almost 13 % increase. Similarly,
between 1987 and 1988, a global increase of 7.5 % was recorded. This was
because the 9.4 % growth in mineral commodities for the aggregate of market
economy countries and the centrally planned economy states of Asia and the
Western Hemisphere, outweighed the 3.4% decline for exports from the former
U.S.S.R. and Eastern Europe. Between 1986 and 1987, the last set of years
in which mineral commodity exports logged a gain in the former U.S.S.R. and
Eastern Europe, that gain was only 2.8% compared with almost 10.5 % for the
rest of the world and 9.8% for the global aggregate. 
The downturns in value of exports from the former U.S.S.R. and its former
CMEA partners in Eastern Europe seemingly reflect not only reductions in

output levels of materials destined for export markets that were occasioned
by moves toward economic rationalization of industry in these countries,
but they also mirror adjustments in monetary exchange rates from the artificially
high levels employed for the currencies of these countries at the outset
of this timespan to more realistic levels reflecting actual trading with
market economy countries that were in effect by 1990. The Bureau's informal
information for 1992, however, suggests that exports from Russia for a number
of commodities have increased due to the disposal of surplus inventories
formerly consumed by the downsized military-industrial complex 
The data presented in table 8 have been developed from UN export trade data
presented in table 9 and derivatives thereof, relating to distribution of
value of world export trade by major mineral commodity groups and growth
of value of world export in major mineral commodities which appear in tables
10 and 1 1 , respectively. These tables represent extensions of data series
that have been included in the Minerals in the World Economy study for many
years. 
The impact of cutbacks in mineral industry activity in the former U.S.S.R.
and the centrally planned economy countries of Eastern Europe on global mineral
trade are immediately apparent when it is shown that of the total value of
1989 world major mineral commodity exports of $519,032 million (presented
in table 9), almost 12.6 % , or $65,371 million, came from these economies
in transition. Yet in 1990, with the total value of world major mineral commodity
exports rising more than 9.7 % to $569,533 million, only slightly less than

10.9 % or $61 ,994 million originated in these same countries. That is, in
a time in which the value of major mineral commodity exports from all other
countries aggregated increased by $53,878 million, the value of major mineral
commodity exports from the former U.S.S.R. and its Eastern European neighbors
declined by $3,377 million. 
Examining these same results in terms of the five main commodity groups 
included, the country group including the former U.S.S.R. and the other centrally
planned economy countries of Eastern Europe registered not only a lower share
of the world total in 1990 than in 1989 in each of the five groups, but also
a lower current dollar value for each group. Further, it is noteworthy that
if the 1990 values were to be converted to 1989 dollars, the disparity would
be even greater. 
 
CONSUMPTION 
 
Nonfuel Mineral Commodities 
 
 Available statistics on 1991 worldwide consumption of selected nonfuel mineral
commodities shown in table 12 indicate downturns for all but 3 of the 15
listed commodities. It should be stressed that in most instances, the consumption
declines were primarily the result of lower levels of use in the former U.S.S.R.
and the former centrally planned economy nations of Eastern Europe. However,
several commodities suffered use cutbacks in market economy countries. In
the case of the nonferrous metals covered in the table, the differences in
performance between market economy countries and the former centrally planned
economy states are immediately evident from the table itself. Among these
important commodities, refined lead, primary magnesium, and refined tin registered
downturns for market economy countries as well as ~ among the centrally planned
economy ~ countries. Also notably, cadmium use showed no significant change
from 1990 levels in either group of countries. 
Global consumption of iron ore fell by 
~ 3.4% or about 31 million tons, and this 
~ was a greater decline than that logged for 
~ production of marketable iron ore and related products, which was down
by only 3.0% or almost 28.2 million tons. 
~ Thus, it would seem that for another year : there was a net addition to
stocks. The 1991 drop in iron and steel scrap use was about 5.5 % or about
18 million tons, on the percentage basis somewhat greater than the 4. 8 %
or 36.9 million ton drop in global steel production. Although