increasing quantities are being refined within Mexico.
The figures shown in the table for oil reserves are of course the roughest approximations, particularly for some of the less explored countries. However, they are compiled from the best available sources and may serve at least to show the apparent relative positions of the different countries at this time. Further exploration is likely to change the percentages and add very greatly to the totals. The significant feature of these figures is the contrast which they indicate between distribution of reserves and distribution of past production. Particularly do they show that the reserves of the United States, which are more closely estimated than those of any other country, are in a far lower ratio to past production than are the reserves in other countries. It was estimated in 1920 that about 40 per cent of the United States reserves are exhausted.4
PRESENT AND PAST PRODUCTION AND RESERVES OF OIL, BY COUNTRIES, IN TERMS OF PERCENTAGE OF WORLD'S TOTAL
| Country | Per cent of production, 1918 | Per cent of total production, 1857-1918 | Per cent of total oil resources |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States and Alaska | 69.15 | 61.41 | 16.26 |
| Mexico | 12.40 | 3.80 | 10.51 |
| Russia (southeastern Russia, southwestern | 7.86 | 24.96 | 15.69 |
| Siberia, region of the Caucasus, northern | |||
| Russia, and Saghalien | |||
| East Indies | 2.58 | 2.51 | 7.00 |
| Roumania, Galicia, and western Europe | 2.79 | 4.07 | 2.64 |
| India | 1.55 | 1.41 | 2.31 |
| Persia and Mesopotamia | 1.40 | .19 | 13.51 |
| Japan and Formosa | .48 | .51 | 2.87 |
| Egypt and Algeria | .40 | .07 | 2.15 |
| Germany | .14 | .22 | — |
| Canada | .06 | .33 | 2.31 |
| Northern South America, including Peru, | .93 | .43 | 13.31 |
| Trinidad and Venezuela | |||
| China | — | — | 3.19 |
| Italy | } | ||
| Cuba | } | .02 | |
| Other countries | } | ||
| World total | 100.00 | 100.00 | 100.00 |