The Extraterrestrial Commodities Market

[AndrewW]

A visionary scientist says that asteroids and comets can be the foundation of a lucrative space-based economy.

http://www.airspacemag.com/as-interview/extraterrestrial-commodities-market-180956240/?no-ist

 

[ShawnDriscoll]

Depends mostly on a world's government code though.

 

[dragoner]

The first step is to develop and demonstrate the ability to build small spacecraft, to launch them, and to learn from their performance in space.

This here; eg who develops the best infrastructure to take advantage will reap the profits, same as the age of exploration and Europe circa 1500.

 

[phavoc]

Something that will have to be conquered first is the legal aspect of orbital extraction and refining. Just like there are great mineral treasures far closer to us on the ocean floor we will need an accepted legal framework to govern the industry. A wild west in orbit isn't in anyone's best interest.

But with the way international things are taking place today, who knows if this is possible under the current world governments.

 

[Condottiere]

They'll probably regulate and license it.

Or corporations can get a monopoly on trade in order to commit the necessary investment, or governments will subsidize R&D in order to find an efficient and economical way for humans to get into space on a much larger scale.

As for industries other than those that build and support infrastructure, most likely ones where zero-gee could have an effect on the manufacturing process, like electronics and possibly pharmaceuticals.