According to figures put together by Cooperacción, on the basis of data from the Ministry of Economy and Mines, mining investment to June was down 2.7% on the same period last year. Taking the same half-yearly comparisons, this is the fourth year in a row that mining investment has slumped, though the fall is not as dramatic as in previous years. In the first half of 2013, investment totalled US$9.7 billion; this year it was down to US$1.9 billion. Investment in exploration, a key indicator of future investment trends, however was up in the first two quarters of this year on 201