UN General Assembly
1990

The developed industrialised countries will suffer some decline in growth rates, but, as happened in 1973 and 1979, they have room for manoeuvre to take defensive action and to cushion themselves against the worst effects. Few, if any, such options are open to the oil-importing developing countries, already burdened with debt and just beginning to emerge from a decade of painful adjustment which was, in large measure, brought on by the oil-price shocks of 1973 and 1979. Such countries are hit a double blow. The first immediate damage is caused by the pre-emption of scarce foreign exchange to meet the increased cost of importing the oil necessary to keep their production machines going and satisfy their basic needs for electricity and transportation. The second blow comes from the reduction of world trade due to the defensive deflationary and conservation measures taken by the developed industrialised nations, which will reduce the demand for their exports and further depress the prices of most of the other commodities on which they rely for export earnings.