With all the environmental controls on mining operations in the United States and the lack of mining controls and other onerous regulations in other countries we have rendered our mining uncompetitive in World Markets. There is no way for a US based mining operation to receive a comparative ROI in within our borders. There are many other factors to consider also, but this is the big one. For instance if your other countries do not have the same rules for environmental controls they can often sell those raw materials to other countries who in turn can sell their finished products, such a specialty alloys, steel, etc. at lower prices than your companies can produce them in the states. Which would appear to be dumping; selling their products for less it costs them to produce them. Many countries prop up such industries with huge tax incentives or subsidizing those industries and/or companies.

There are many reasons for this, sometimes it is merely to insure that those companies are in business to sell products to the Countries government agencies for infrastructure projects. Other times it is to appease labor and provide jobs. Sometimes it is in retaliation for a perceived or actual trade war from another trading partner country, which is propping up one of it