New Perspectives for East-West Trade

The volume of OECD exports to the East rose by 12 percent in 1989. This favourable performance was due to the economic boom in the West as well as to the expansion of loans to the East (the East's indebtedness rose by $ 15 billion to $ 155 billion). In 1990 and 1991 growth in exports to the East is likely to level off slightly (to +8.9 percent). The political and economic upheavals in the East cannot be expected to boost East-West trade before 1992 or 1993.