Abstract
The demand for mineral products is driven and shaped by the structure, location, and trend of overall economic activity. Changes in the world's economic centre of gravity are having deep seated effects on mineral markets. So too are the far reaching political changes of recent years. The climate has swung in favour of private investment in mineral projects within a liberalised legal and fiscal framework. In this article Phillip Crowson argues that foreign involvement in mineral ventures has become widely acceptable as being better able to deliver the fruits of economic progress to all stakeholders than the previous inward looking nationalism. Brazil cannot remain aloof from the broad politico-economic forces that are shaping the world minerals industry.
This paper was presented to the First International Symposium on Mining & Development, July 1995, Campinas, Brazil.