This article is part of a 20 article special report on "Metals, miners and money".
"What do flat-screen TVs, organic tomatoes, bathtubs, and hybrid cars have in common? asks international investing expert Frida Ghitis. The contributing editor to Global Investing explains, "All have a promising future and are produced with key materials brought to you courtesy of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM)."
Indeed, the company is unusual among miners -- and unique among the stock featured in this resource report -- as the firm is a non-metal miner. Says Ghitis, "Everything SQM sells comes from mines in Chile's Atacama Desert, the driest place on earth. SQM, once state-owned, exploits the unique mix of nitrates, iodine, and lithium in the rich caliche deposits.
"These are the largest known reserve of iodine and nitrate, essential elements for human survival. Also in the mix is lithium, increasingly a staple in electronics.
"Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile is a large non-metal mining and chemical operation, with a market cap of more than $2 billion and sales that broke the $1 billion mark in 2006. From its South American perch, it is a true global enterprise; its products are sold in over 100 countries by agencies in more than 20.
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