6  MINERALS IN THE WORLD ECONOMY—1991mineral industry. Although
this
may be true for the world in total, it does not help in assessing the shifts
in the relative roles of the various countries. 
 
Quantitative Commodity Output 
 
Of the 101 distinct mineral commodities and/or subdivisions of mineral commodities
for which world mineral production as measured by the U.S. Bureau of Mines
is presented in table 4 for 1987-9 1 . Sand and gravel are added for the
first time in this series. Only 25 registered increases in 1991 relative
to their 1990 levels of production, 75 showed declines, and 1 registered
an output level unchanged from that of 1990. These results were even poorer
than those for 1990, when 38 commodities logged increases and 63 recorded
declines, on the basis of revised data available to the U.S. Bureau of Mines.
Without question, 1991 results were far less satisfactory than those of any
previous year, 1986-90 inclusive, at least for the world as a whole. It is
important, however, at this point, to reemphasize that the vastly larger
parts of 1991 production declines were chiefly the result of shortfalls in
the former U.S.S.R. and the former centrally planned economy nations of Eastern
Europe. Space considerations preclude detailing the production statistics
on a commodity-by-commodity and countryby-country basis in this text, but
examination of the tables of leading producers that appear at the end of
this study will demonstrate shortfalls for the major producers of selected
important commodities within this geographic area. 
Of the 53 metallic mineral commodities recorded separately in table 4, only
1 1 recorded production gains in 
1991 and 42 showed declines. Of the 11 showing gains, only 3 reached new
record production highs in 199 1 ; these (in the order they appear in table
4) were mine copper, primary refined copper, and mine platinum-group metals.
Others logging output gains in 199 1 with respect to 1990 levels, but not
achieving record output levels in 1991 , together with the year in which
they reached historic output 
highs, were unalloyed aluminum ingot (1989), smelter cadmium (1988), chromite
(1989), columbium-tantalum concentrates (1988), manganese ore (1980), refinery
selenium (1979), refinery tellurium (1985), and secondary smelter zinc (1982
and 1983). 
Of the 1 1 metals for which production gains were recorded for 199 1 , mine
copper and primary refined copper recorded gains for the ninth consecutive
year; mine platinum group metals, refinery selenium and refined tellurium
all logged increases for the second consecutive year; unalloyed aluminum
ingot, chromite, and secondary smelter zinc each registered increases after
downturns in 1990 from record to date highs achieved in 1989; manganese ore
also gained in 1991 after a 1990 decline but fell substantially below its
record high of more than a decade ago; and smelter cadmium and columbium-tantalum
concentrates advanced in 1991 after declines in both 1989 and 1990 from record
highs of 1988. 
Of the 42 metallic commodities showing lower 1991 output levels than in 1990,
beryl concentrate and mine uranium recorded output drops for the fifth straight
year after having attained record production levels in 1961 and 1980, respectively;
arsenic trioxide output fell for the fourth consecutive year, thus remaining
below the record output level of 1985; and output of mine cobalt, primary
smelter lead, mine mercury, and secondary smelter tin fell for the third
straight year (peak levels, respectively, were 1986, 1985, and 1971 and 1985).
Fifteen metallic commodities registered declines for the second consecutive
year in 1991 , after reaching historic peaks in 1989. These were primary
smelter copper, secondary smelter copper, secondary refined copper, iron
ore, pig iron, ferroalloys, crude steel, secondary smelter lead, secondary
refined lead, mine molybdenum, mine nickel, plant nickel, titaniferous slag,
mine vanadium, and primary smelter zinc. Six other metallic commodities registered
declines for the second straight year in 1991 but had logged record production
highs before 1989. These, and the years in 
which they registered record outputs 
~ parenthetically, were mine bismuth 
~ (1985), smelter bismuth (1986), primary 
~ refined lead (1985), monazite concentrate 
~ (1985), mine tin (1979), and ilmenite (1974). The remaining 14 metallic
commodities recorded declines in 1991 after logging increases in 1990. Of
the latter group, the following had set to-date record production highs in
1990: alumina, bauxite, mine gold, primary smelter magnesium, secondary smelter
magnesium, mine silver, mine zinc, and zirconium concentrates. Others in
this group showing declines in 1991 following increases in 1990, but that
had attained record production highs before 1990, were as follows, with the
year of record productionprovided parenthetically: mine antimony (1987),
refined cobalt (1986), mine lead (1973), primary smelter tin (1980), rutile
(1980), and mine tungsten (1980). 
 Of the 37 individual categories of nonmetallic minerals and their products
listed in table 4 under the heading "industrial minerals, " only
1 1 registered
gains in 1991 compared with their 1990 output levels. Of those recording
gains, eight attained new production highs in 1990. These, in the order they
appear in the table, were boron materials, cement, fuller's earth, kaolin,
gem diamond, industrial diamond, iodine, and strontium minerals. Other commodities
in this group that logged output gains between 1990 and 1991, but with a
1991 output that fell short of their previous record highs, together with
the year in which they reached record-to-date output, were pumice (1973),
gypsum (1989), and salt (1989). 
 Of the 1 1 nonmetals registering gains, cement attained a 16th consecutive
year of growth; kaolin registered an increase for the 9th consecutive year;
gem diamond, industrial diamond, and iodine each logged their 5th consecutive
year of growth; boron materials registered a gain for the 4th consecutive
year; output of fuller's earth increased for the 3rd year in a row; gypsum,
salt, and strontium minerals recorded gains after declines in 1990; and pumice
logged an output gain after reductions in 1989 and 1990.