Denis Thompson, of Thompson Monuments Inc. in Webster City, Iowa, recommends zinc, which is lighter and less expensive than bronze, and is worth much less as scrap.

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So, less revenue from scrap.

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My hunch is that George Osborne will find a way before the next election to scrap this tax and pay for it by another less visible tax increase on the wealthy.

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The consultancy looks for another surplus (excluding investment), with mine output and scrap expected to rise further at a time when a less-than-promising economic outlook takes some shine off of fabrication.

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By that he means that when the economy is in a prolonged slump, businesses stop investing in increasing their production, and may even scrap existing capacity, while the out-of-work lose skills and motivation, becoming less employable.

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