Also, the United States now depends on other nations for nearly a third of all the minerals considered essential to its industry. It is felt that by 1985 this dependence would rise to one half. The cost? In 1970 production of minerals within the United States fell nearly 9 billion dollars short of its requirements. And a government official estimates that this deficit will reach 31 billion dollars by 1985, and 64 billion by the year 2000. All that must be made up by imports. And these estimates were made before the rampant inflation of prices in 1973 and 1974!

[Chart on page 18]

WHOLESALE PRICE INCREASES WITHIN THE UNITED STATES IN JUST ONE YEAR

COMMODITY MID-1973 MID-1974 INCREASE

Newsprint, ton $169.00 $205.00 21 percent

Steel scrap, ton 53.00 145.00 174 percent

Sulphuric acid, ton 31.00 41.00 32 percent

Tin, lb. 2.18 4.49 106 percent

Copper, lb.  .60  .86 43 percent

Aluminum ingot, lb.  .25  .33 32 percent

Zinc, lb.  .21  .35 67 percent

Gasoline, gal.  .14  .28 100 percent

Fuel oil, gal.  .11  .23 209 percent