Import and export of the same good

                Specialization in the production of some good has driven many countries into the exportation and importation of those goods. Importing and exporting products is often more suitable action for this countries to do because they might produce more good than necessary for their population that they have to export them and at the same time they gain more profit, but also a lot of countries find more suitable to import some products because they find it cheaper since those products will require a high income for the final products and would be cheaper to import them. It totally makes sense to import and export products, but a lot of countries import and export the same product, if they are already producing a certain product why would they export it and then import same product? The products that are being imported and exported at the same time  fall into two categories, homogeneous goods which are goods that are identical, meaning that the consumer can't find a difference and then we find differentiated products which are the same products but with minor differences. A country will trade homogeneous and differentiated products because of different reason that would make them the most suitable option for some countries.

                Why in the world will a country import and export the very same product or trade homogeneous goods? These countries will trade homogeneous good due to different condition that could have an effect on the price of the product as location, join products, entrepot trade and re-export trade. The transportation cost affects the price of the products because depending of the distance it has to travel will make the price vary. For example City 1 is in country A, City 2, and 3. If City 2 is a lot closer to City 1 in country A than city 2 and 3, it would be cheaper to ship goods from city 2 to 1 than to ship it to city 3 or 4 as shown in the map below. Other factors as join products have an effect in the trade of homogeneous products because some products might come with other services that would be beneficial if they are exported rather than being kept within the country. For example, country A might import a product (in this case the products involve in the homogeneous trade) attached with another good that they need, and they might export the same products (the homogeneous good) attached with other goods. An entrepot trade has a big effect in the trade of homogeneous products, since a firm might have the products be manufacture in country A and then export to country B because they have a worldwide distribution center in the country and then the same good produced in country A would be exported to other countries around the globe by the headquarters in country B. Another factor that causes the homogeneous trade is re-export trade which consists in the import of a good and then some minor modifications are done to it and then they are exported to another country.

                There are other good that look a lot alike but they have differences that the customer can tell and quality. Differentiated good can vary on quality and some other things that would affect the judgment of the customer, but we are not talking about this today. Exportation and importation of good is good for several economies system in countries because it lets them grow. For example, Japanese like compact cars, they make the, but they get to a point where they can't sell and many, so they start to export them to sell them in other countries and these other countries import them because they don't produce them. Homogeneous trade is affected by other factors, but it is still good for some economies because they usually find the most profitable and often the most efficient way to get to their consumers, so it wouldn't be a waste of money and resources to export goods from city 2 city 1 instead of exporting them to city 3. I think that businesses will usually find the most efficient way to distribute the good simply because of the law of supply and demand which will limit what companies can do.

Mining, an industry more about public relationships than minerals

Mining is an industry dedicated to the extraction of natural resources and here is where everything starts. Mining companies usually have to pay royalties to governments which are some kind of taxes that they pay based on their profit and the amount of minerals extracted from the ground. Mining companies usually face environmental regulation enforced by governments, this is done so the land won't be poisoned or polluted.  Mining companies usually spend a great deal of money and time in accomplishing all these regulations. Governments play a huge role in the amount of mining investors, because of the royalties; mining companies will decide whether to invest in a certain place or not based on the royalties that they will have to pay. Also, the ownership of the mineral which is determined by the governments plays a huge role in whether mining companies will invest or not. Also, mining companies tend to stay away from unstable governments because the government could take over the mining place and it would be a huge lost for the company. In other words, mining companies will only invest where the government is friendly a reasonable. Demonstrations are another factor that affects the mining companies because usually people living in the surrounding areas of the mining camps will demonstrate to get some good or service from the mining company. For example, a mining company comes to this place and they do their studies on the land and conclude that it is rich in mineral recourses, then they have to apply for permits from the government to extra the mineral, then they have to invest huge amount of money in environmental regulations, make happy the people in the surrounding areas by offering services like roads, water system, jobs, etc. And finally they have to pay royalties to the government. In other words, the mining companies have to give a ton benefits to people and entities that won't help them more profits. It looks unfair for mining companies but they help a lot of people and still make profit. In other words they work more in public relations than in extracting minerals because they usually focus on pleasing everybody that can harm their business directly or indirectly and after they have accomplished that goal they can start to extract those precious metals.