On October 7
Dennis Redmond wrote.
----------
> The Soviet Union sold a hell of a lot of oil and gas on world markets,
but that's
<all it was able to sell.
In an attempt to show that gas and oil was not "all it was able to sell" on
world markets
Frank Durgin, On Th, 8 Oct 1998, wrote:
<Oil and gas accounted for between 40 and 50% of Soviet exports.
<And that accounted for a little over 31%
<Of domestic production of oil and gas.
<7.4% of Soviet output of tractors was exported (considerable numbers of
<Soviet made "Belarus"
<tractors were exported to the US) 32% of
<Soviet output of paper making machinery and equipment was exported.
<29% of its output of textile machinery,
<10.4% of its output of equipment for producing chemicals,
<11.7% of its printing equipment, some 6% of its of machine tools
< 28.4% of its production of automobiles 36.5% of its cameras, 27.8% of it
<Clocks and watches.
<Source; narodnoye khozyastvo SSSR v 1990
On October 9 Dennis Redmond wrote.:
But the Soviet
<economy was not geared towards exports; most of the above machinery ended
<up in Eastern European markets, and never had to face the test of world
<market competition
=====================
Denis:
You correctly state that much of Soviet trade was with Eastern Europe, but
one
could also state that "Much of Soviet foreign trade was with capitalist
nations"
In 1982, for example, 54.3% of Soviet foreign trade turnover was with
socialist countries,
45.7% with capitalist countries where it did have to meet the test.
Here are some other thoughts, which I feel, may bear on the subject:
Soviet Foreign trade turnover as a percent of GDP was far lower than
that of the
industrialized capitalist nations of the world. But to interpret this as an
inability to
compete is to err. It was a policy choice, one which Gregory and Stuart
termed
"a policy of trade aversion". As explained by Gregory and Stuart, there are
a number
of factors, which explain that.
1) Western markets were viewed as subject to chaotic fluctuations that
could
jeopardize the planned economy. A reliance on foreign trade could endanger
the planning process.
2) The reality of a "hostile capitalist encirclement." Witness the periodic
trade
embargoes and credit restrictions imposed by the Western powers. A fear of
becoming dependent on the West, which could subsequently pull the rug out
f
rom under them.
3) Trade with the Socialist nations was fostered in order to integrate the
socialist world.
I hope I did not misinterpret the points I thought you were trying to make.
Sincerely
Frank
