MINING
Colombia has been the world's leading exporter, of emeralds. It also produced a significant amount of gold(ranking second in the region), was Latin America's only producer of platinum and third-largest producer of cement, and was a leading producer of nickel. In 2002, cement, gold, coal, and emeralds were among the country's leading industries, and petroleum and coal were, respectively, the first- and third-leading export commodities.