CARTELS: Imitating OPEC

Inspired by the heady success of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in pumping up the price of oil, four countries that account for 70% of the world's copper exports last week adopted some of OPEC's tactics. Zambia, Zaire, Chile and Peru, members of a cartel called the Intergovernmental Council of Copper Exporting Countries (CIPEC) announced plans to reduce shipments of the metal by 10%. Said Fernandez Maldonado, Peru's Minister of Energy and Mines: "The Arabs have shown us the way."

The move was prompted by sagging copper prices, down from $3,200 a ton earlier this year to less...

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