The Role of International Trade in the Czechoslovak Economy

The role of international trade in the Czechoslovak economy is influenced by two sets of factors which work in opposite directions. The relatively small size of the country, the extent of development of its industrial potential, and a relative scarcity of raw materials tend to increase the importance of international trade. The impact of various institutional aspects of the communist system, including the organization and planning of international trade, and of the orthodox communist policy for economic development has the opposite effect.1 It is a well-established empirical observation that trade is of greater weight in the economic activity of small nations than in that of larger units and that is particularly true of nations that have developed and attained fairly high levels of per capita output and consumption.2 Large countries often enjoy a variety of climate, soil, and mineral resources. Small countries are usually somewhat onesided in their natural endowment and for this reason they have to specialize in some lines of production and to obtain other commodities through international trade. At the same time, a small population reduces the size of the domestic market and, even when the latter is effectively protected against foreign competition, as is the case under the communist system, it may still be too small for the efficient production of at least some commodities. Unless access to the export markets exists, the country is forced to produce in plants which are below optimum size at relatively high costs. With a population of 14.2 million in 1966, Czechoslovakia is a medium-sized country. However, she is closer in position to such European countries as the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, Greece, Sweden, Austria, or even Switzerland than to France, Italy, Britain, or West

Communism · Communist state · Competition (biology · Economics · Endowment · International economics · International trade · Market economy · Per capita · Planned economy · Population · Production (economics · Scarcity · Economic and Fiscal Studies · Global Trade and Competitiveness · Global trade and economics

• Soviet Coordinators of International Economic Cooperation in the Eastern Bloc in the Period 1948-1953

  Open Access•Ondřej FIŠER•Historia i Świat•2023

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