Hermit wrote:mistermack wrote:Sounds like Iron needs an OPEC.
Cartels do tend to stabilise prices and maximise profits, but they are difficult to create, and they are no panacea either. Right now OPEC in general and Saudi Arabia in particular is digging its own grave by throwing the spanner in Iran's oil sales.
In my previous post I was merely explaining why a nation's possession of natural resources does not guarantee a strong currency or economy. I hope to have enlightened you on that issue.
Yes you did. I certainly didn't know that the Iron ore market had been so volatile.
I'll see if I can find you a biscuit.
In some ways, it can be a curse. Countries get used to the inflow of foreign money during the good times, and lose the economic diversity that would have kept things buzzing when the market took a dive.
Venezuela is the classic example.
That happened to Russia too with the oil price. They have managed to improve matters a lot in recent years, and oil and gas are not so vital to their economy as they once were.
Funnily enough, sanctions have helped quite a bit, as Russia has been growing home industries to replace imports that used to come from countries that imposed sanctions.