Production of most Canadian metals down

Canadian production of copper, primary nickel and refined zinc rose between March 1997 and March 1998. However, output of commodities such as gold, silver, refined nickel, lead and primary zinc declined over the period.

The statistics shown below were compiled by Natural Resources Canada (NRC), and are included in the March 1998 issue of Production of Canada’s Leading Minerals. To order a copy, contact Jacqueline Paquette of NRC at (613) 992-9005. NRC’s address on the World Wide Web is

http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/mms/efab/mmsd

NON-FERROUS	March 1997	March 1998
Primary copper	55,355 tonnes	60,719 tonnes
Refined copper	45,907 tonnes	50,790 tonnes
Primary nickel	18,578 tonnes	18,911 tonnes
Refined nickel	13,483 tonnes	12,683 tonnes
Gold	13.6 million grams	13.3 million grams
Silver	118,304 kg	77,305 kg
Primary lead	20,279 tonnes	9,075 tonnes
Refined lead	13,483 tonnes	12,683 tonnes
Primary zinc	79,014 tonnes	74,337 tonnes
Refined zinc	59,899 tonnes	64,693 tonnes

NON-METALLICSMarch 1997March 1998

Asbestos33,220 tonnes20,815 tonnes

Potash973,318 tonnes846,820 tonnes