Unlike copper, zinc and lead, production of tin has not risen dramatically over the years and has rarely exceeded 250,000 t/yr. The real price of tin spent most of the first half of the twentieth century in a relatively narrow band between US$10 and US$15/t (19985), with some excursions (Figure 1.12; USGS, 2005). From 1956 its price was regulated by a series of international agreements between producers and consumers under the auspices of the International Tin Council (ITC), which mirrored the highly successful policy of De Beers in controlling the gem diamond trade. Price stability was sought through selling from the ITC's huge stockpiles when the price rose and buying into the stockpile when the price fell. From the mid-1970s, however, the price of tin was driven artificially higher at a time of world recession, expanding production and falling consumption, the latter due mainly to the increasing use of aluminium, rather than tin-plated steel, cans. Although the ITC imposed restrictions on

Tidak seperti tembaga, seng dan timah, produksi timah belum meningkat secara dramatis selama bertahun-tahun dan telah jarang melebihi 250.000 t / tahun. Harga timah sebenarnya menghabiskan sebagian besar yang pertama setengah abad kedua puluh dalam waktu yang relatif sempit band antara US $ 10 dan US $ 15 / t (19985), dengan beberapa kunjungan (Gambar 1.12; USGS, 2005). Dari 1956 harganya diatur oleh serangkaian perjanjian internasional antara produsen dan konsumen di bawah naungan Internasional Tin Council (ITC), yang mencerminkan sangat kebijakan sukses De Beers dalam mengendalikan perdagangan berlian permata. Stabilitas harga dicari melalui penjualan dari tumpukan besar ITC ketika harga naik dan membeli ke stockpile ketika harganya jatuh. Dari pertengahan 1970-an, bagaimanapun, harga timah didorong secara artifisial lebih tinggi pada saat resesi dunia, memperluas produksi dan jatuh konsumsi, yang terakhir ini terutama disebabkan oleh peningkatan menggunakan aluminium, bukan baja berlapis timah, kaleng. Meskipun ITC memberlakukan pembatasan