总部设在加拿大哈利法克斯市的金属经济研究组织对1997年世界矿业公司的勘探预算进行了调查。去年全球勘探预算共计约51亿美元，其中预算最多的10家公司共计为JO．5亿美元，占21％。虽然1997年是勘探预算持续增长的5个年头，但这很可能是90年代的最高水平了。1996年排名前IO位 The Metal Economics Research Group, headquartered in Halifax, Canada, investigated the exploration budget of the world’s mining companies in 1997. Last year, the global exploration budget totaled about 5.1 billion U.S. dollars, of which the top 10 companies in the budget totaled JO. 500 million US dollars, accounting for 21%. Although 1997 was a continuous five-year exploration budget growth, it is likely to be the highest level of the 1990s. In 1996 the top IO place