Page:NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 18; CZECHOSLOVAKIA; THE ECONOMY CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110014-8.pdf/34

 APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110014-8

tions, prices, and delivery terms are drawn up between appropriate foreign trade organizations of the partner countries. In spite of the establishment in 1964 of an International Bank for Economic Cooperation (IBEC) to clear trade accounts among members of CEMA on a multilateral basis, multilateral trading among the members is almost nonexistent. Trade with Communist partners still has to be balanced out almost entirely on a bilateral basis.

b. Growth and direction (C)

Trade has been growing more rapidly than GNP. At current prices, since 1960 trade turnover has risen 7.4% annually while GNP has been averaging about 5.9%. Communist countries have accounted for most of the growth. From less than one-sixth of trade before World War II, these countries by 1950 made up well over half of the total, and since 1958 their share has been 70% to 75%. Trade with the U.S.S.R., which accounts for nearly half of the Communist trade, has increased the most in absolute terms, but the rate of growth of trade with East Germany has been the most rapid and East Germany now is by far the largest of Czechoslovakia's East European trade partners.

Trade with the industrial West has stayed at a constant 20% of turnover since 1965. West Germany alone accounts for about 25% of this trade—by far the largest partner—followed by Austria and the United Kingdom. The share with the United States is on the increase, but still is less than 1% of turnover. Trade with major partners is shown in Figure 16.

c. Commodity structure (C)

With Communist countries and the less developed areas, Czechoslovakia's overall trade pattern is that of a small industrialized country importing large amounts of raw and semifinished materials and exporting principally machinery and manufactured goods. With the industrial West, Czechoslovakia sells mainly raw materials, semifinished steel and consumer goods and imports machinery and other manufactures. The overall commodity structure of trade is shown in Figure 17.

The composition of Czechoslovakia's trade has changed radically since World War II. Imports of foodstuffs, nonmetallic minerals, iron ore and scrap, petroleum, chemicals, and iron and steel products have increased greatly. Imports of raw materials for light industrial production have remained at about the prewar levels and therefore have dropped sharply as a share of imports. Exports of machinery and equipment have increased enormously. In constant prices they are more than 20 times the prewar level.

The Communist countries supply most of Czechoslovakia's imports of petroleum and petroleum products, foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco, and ores and nonmetallic minerals. The U.S.S.R. is the largest single supplier of raw materials, furnishing more than 40% of gross and almost 70% of net raw materials imports; for example, the U.S.S.R. supplies 95% of Czechoslovakia's imported crude oil, 87% of the iron ore, and 87% of the wheat. Less-developed countries furnish furs, hides and skins, oilseeds, textile fibers, crude rubber, tropical foods, and tobacco, as well as chrome

28

APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110014-8