Exports of Primary Commodities and the Soviet Terms of Trade

Abstract

The period of the 1970s has witnessed a considerable price explosion in the world commodity markets with significant distributional effects on world income particularly through changes in relative prices. The well-known OPEC-inspired increases in prices for oil have meant that oil exports have become an important factor of growth in the oil producing countries. The question arises, therefore, whether the Soviet Union, with its vast natural resource endowment, has been able to benefit from these changes through its participation in the international division of labour; if so, it would also be desirable to know something about the extent of these gains. This chapter represents an attempt to provide an answer to this question and, in addition, to suggest the likely Soviet attitudes towards exports of primary commodities in the future.