Raymond F. Mikesell deals with sources of conflict between private foreign investors and the governments of developing countries. He concludes that government ownership and control will expand and that foreign investors are most likely to become sellers of their special services rather than remain investors who act freely for the benefit of parent companies. Originally published in 1971.

I: The Issues; 1: The Contribution of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to Economic Development; 2: Conflict in Foreign Investor-Host Country Relations: A Preliminary Analysis; 3: Taxation of Extractive Industries in Latin America and the Impact on Foreign Investors; 4: Labor Relations in Mineral and Petroleum Resource Development; II: The Case Studies; 5: Foreign Petroleum Companies and the State in Venezuela; 6: The Impact of the Petroleum Export Industry on the Pattern of Venezuelan Economic Development; 7: The Frondizi Contracts and Petroleum Self-Sufficiency in Argentina; 8: Alternative Means of Meeting Argentina's Petroleum Requirements; 9: Aramco: The Evolution of an Oil Concession; 10: The Impact of the Oil Industry on the Economy of Iran; 11: Foreign-Owned Export-Oriented Enclave in a Rapidly Industrializing Economy: Sulphur Mining in Mexico; 12: Venezuela's Iron Ore Industry; 13: Iron Ore in Brazil: The Experience of the Hanna Mining Company; 14: Bethlehem's Joint Venture in Brazilian Manganese; 15: Conflict and Accommodation in Chilean Copper; 16: Contribution of Copper to Chilean Economic Development, 1920-67: Profile of a Foreign-Owned Export Sector; III: Findings and Conclusions; 17: Major Problem Areas