Decline In Soviet Trade With West

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31726, 9 July 1968, Page 13

Decline In Soviet Trade With West

(N.Z.P. A.-Reuter—Copyright) NEW YORK, July 8. The much-discussed boom in Soviet trade with the West slowed down considerably last year, according to the “New York Times” News Service. Soviet trade with industrially-developed countries in the West increased by only 6 per cent in 1967, compared with a 12 per cent gain in 1966. Conversely, the Soviet Union’s trade with Its Communist partners in the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance leaped ahead by more than 10 per cent last year. But Soviet trade with Communist China in 1967 dropped to almost the same low level as that with the United States. Over all, total Soviet trade

in 1967 reached a record value equivalent to $NZ16,071,500,000, compared with $NZ14,732,130,000 in 1966. Japan and Finland became the Soviet Union’s two largest non-Communist trading partners, each accounting for about $NZ446,430,000. Both increased their Soviet trade sharply last year, Japan by over 10 per cent and Finland by about 8 per cent. Britain, formerly the largest Soviet trading partner in the West, was crowded into third place in 1967. Its exchanges with the Soviet Union remained virtually unchanged from 1966. Italy made the most spectacular trade gain among the Western nations. Its trade, worth about $NZ359,290,000, was greater by more than 50 per cent than the 1966 figure. France and West Germany also increased their Soviet trade last year. Canadian trade with the Soviet Union in 1967, on the other hand, fell to less than

half the volume of exchanges the year before; and SovietAmerican trade also declined, to about 5NZ89,286,000. Soviet-Chinese trade in 1967 came to a virtual halt-—it was down to about $NZ93,750,000 from $NZ276,788,000 the year before. Earlier in the decade Soviet-Chinese trade amounted to almost $NZ892,860,000 a year. The Soviet’s commercial trade with North Vietnam more than doubled in 1967, reaching a total of $NZ147,321,000, of which almost $NZ133,930,000 consisted of Soviet exports to North Vietnam. Soviet trade with Cuba increased by about 25 per cent in 1967, imports from Cuba being valued at almost $NZ330,360,000. United Arab Republic trade with the Soviet Union, particularly Soviet exports to that country, rose very sharply, as did Soviet trade with Algeria and Iran; but Soviet trade with India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Brazil and Argentina declined.