Foreign invested capital is relatively safe. There is a general respect for property rights and little danger of expropriation. Profits may be remitted freely, although repatriation of capital is not guaranteed by the government. In the past there have been only a very few exceptional cases when the authorities had reason to withhold approval of applications for capital repatriation. The central government licenses imports and exports and foreign exchange, collects all income taxes and allocates portions of the tax revenues back to the individual states. Mining has a preferential tax position in Australia and in general is well treated, but I caution you that the tax treatment is sufficiently different than our own that it bears careful investigation and poses some difficulties for the American investor, particularly in those instances in which he is participating with either an Australian or British company as a partner. Through its control over export licenses the federal government also may assert control over export pricing. Throughout Australia nearly all mineral rightsremain the property of the Crown but are administered by the individual states. Prospecting is protected by mining codes and ordinances, and mining leases or rights are obtained under mining legislation or franchises, which specify the rate of property development in terms of labor and expenditures. While the mining codes are specific on many points there are others that must be negotiated between the state government and the company or individual properties, and often these negotiations place upon the company obligations to build ancillary facilities or to bear a charge for those services that will be furnished by the government. -15-