onsidering the cost of exploration, is probably no greater than in
other industries (p. 330). If we assume a 6 per cent return, which
perhaps is somewhere near the world-wide standard of interest rate for
money, and capitalize the value of the world's annual output at this
rate, we obtain a world capital value for mineral resources, exclusive
of water, of 150 billions of dollars. This assumes an indefinitely long
life for reserves. This assumption may need some qualifications, but
it is the writer's view (Chapter XVII) that it is justified for a
sufficiently long period to substantiate the above method of
calculation.

[Illustration: FIG. 2. Commercial (financial) control of the
mineral resources of the world.]

[Illustration: FIG. 3. Political (territorial) control of the
mineral resources of the world.]

POLITICAL AND COMMERCIAL CONTROL OF MINERAL RESOURCES

The occurrence of a mineral resource within a country does not
necessarily mean control by that particular political unit. A citizen of
the United States may own a mineral resource in South America.
Commercial control of this sort was demonstrated during the war to be of
more far-reaching significance than had been supposed, and it became
necessary to ascertain, not only the output of the different countries,
but the commercial control of this output. Investigation of this subject
for twenty-three leading commodities shows that the political and
commercial control are by no means the same. These are partly summarized
in the accompanying graphs from Spurr.[11] It is to be noted that the
graphs show the control of many commodities as it existed in 1913, the
last normal year before the war. Changes during and since the war have
of course largely altered the situation for certain commodities, notably
for iron, coal, and potash. These developments are summarized in the
discussion of the individual resources. It is also to be noted that the
commercial or financial control of the world's minerals, under the
influence of the fostering and protective policies of certain
governments discussed in Chapter XVIII, is at present in a state of
flux. Considerable changes are taking place today and are to be looked
for in the future.

RESERVES OF MINERAL RESOURCES

Annual production figures are only to a very partial extent an
indication of the distribution of the great reserves of mineral
resources. For instance, there are enormous reserves of coal in China
which are n