Evening star., 1948-01-25
Where Soviet Economy Stands

Russian statistics, like many other
matters in the Soviet Union, are peculiar.
Instead Of exact figures, they consist of
percentage tables. More precise informa-
ton is withheld. Indeed any such in
formation is crime under Soviet law.
Falling under the category Of sabotage !"
1t may entail the death penalty
Under these circumstances, the recent
announcement by the Soviet State Plan
ming Commission takes a deal of expert
Interpretation, even assuming that the
information given out is factually accurate.
This announcement purports to be a
balance sheet of the Soviet economy for
the year 1947. It consists of two sets Of
relation of Soviet industrial and agri-
cultural production for last year to the
production levels called for under the
current f1ve-year plan, 1947 being the
plans second year. The second set con-
Germs production changes in 1947 in rela-
tion to 1946.
BY and large, the picture presented IS
an encouraging one. Industrial production
for the Soviet Union as a whole averaged
levels, though lags in the districts of
Western Russia occupied by the Germans
are admitted, these districts including
some of the most important industrial
areas in the Soviet Union. There is no
statistical breakdown to reveal how much
of this production contributes to strategic
purposes and how much to civilian needs,
though certain lines, such as window glass
and cement can fairly be interpreted as
being chiefly consumer goods.
The second method of figuring, based on
percentage differentials between 1946 and
1947 shows greater gains. But these per-
centages should be evaluated against the
known facts that 1946 was bad year for
Soviet agriculture while 1t was also year
of mediocre industrial progress However,
the announcement states that the harvest
yield in grain crops reached the prewar
level in 1947 and registered a gain of So
per cent over that of 1916.
This agricultural information Is SUB
stantiated In part by current report OF
our own Department of Agriculture. 1ts
Foreign Agricultural Relations Division
announces that the Soviet Union has de-
veloped "a significant grain export pro-
gram" and that the Soviet government
has already exported, or is committed to
export, 2,367,O 900 long tons of grain About
half of this total consists of bread grains
(wheat and rye), the balance being coarse
grains for stock feed or other nonhuman
uses. The satellite" countries, from Fin
land to Bulgaria, are mostly on the list OF
recipients, this being in accordance with
treaties tying in those countries with the
Soviet economy Under the recent trade
agreement with Britain, that country gets
large shipments of Soviet coarse grains,
while smaller exports of both kinds OF
grains are earmarked for the Scandinavian
countries.
While these Soviet grain exports are
considerable, they should be compared
with our own schedules. The United
States has set as it's export goal for the
1e47-48 crop year ending next June 30
the figures of 12,1OO,000 long tons of bread
grains and 100000 tons of coarse grains.
And of course the other big grain
producing export countries - Canada,
Australia and Argentina, should be con-
sidered as parts of the background against
which Soviet grain exports can be
evaluated. A-----------