REMEMBRANCE IN TIME - Index of

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Remembrance in Time
In the balance of payments communist Romania, achieving external balance was quite
difficult and then when it was with great sacrifices. For any country but especially for
developing countries as Communist Romania, industrialization and modernization of the
economy could not do than by large imports of machinery, equipment and modern
technology and raw material imports. Because of this external balance remained a goal.
In general, we can cut three times in balance of payments:
a. 1950-1970 when the call to scale external resources was reduced due to international
political context;
b. 1971-1981 period characterized by intensive use of foreign loans and the crisis of
external debt;
c. 1982-1989 period marked the return to external balance through debt settlement.
The first two decades of communist rule were marked by mainly economic relations
with socialist countries. Annual trade agreements had in mind mainly a balanced trade
balance, and where negative balances appeared to agree, for the following year,
increased deliveries of products for the shortfall. Recourse to external credit was very
limited 2 .
The situation has changed since 1963 when the Bucharest authorities were aware that
the Polish model to borrow long term loans from the West for upgrading their industry
represent the best solution to maintain the pace of industrial growth and investment in this
fundamental branch of the socialist economy.
First Secretary RMP Gheorghiu-Dej expressed quite realistic, in December 1963, the
new situation of Romania and the need for change in development strategy: "To keep the
rhythm in which we go and call not only to national income will having to call to credit".
Vital for Romania that time was to use the favourable context existing in relationship
with Western countries: “the developed capitalist countries are willing to give us credit
and of course, they do not put us political conditions” said Gheorghiu-Dej.
"If we want to maintain a high growth rate of productive forces, we will appeal to
long-term loans. Necessarily have to do it" indicates Gheorghiu-Dej in the Politburo.
He was convinced that "capitalist large banks tended to contact us. Either we need
bank capital" 3 .
Gheorghiu-Dej's successor, Nicolae Ceausescu, has only to continue and deepen this
economic strategy. In the 70s the call to Western banks financial resources has grown
to major. Impact on the country's external balance over the medium to long was but
one miserable. The international economic context of the time marked by two oil
crises, Romania's current account has deteriorated dramatically, especially since 1978
(-759 million) reached in 1980 to a deficit of 2,420 million dollars. Although both
import and export recorded consistent growth between 1976-1980, the differences
between import and export have become higher over the latter.
2 N.N. Constantinescu (coordinator), Istoria economică a României (Economic History of
Romania). 1939-1989, vol. II, Economic Publishing House, Bucharest, 2000, p. 375 [Chapter 12
prepared by Gheorghe Stroe, Băncile, circulaŃia monetară şi creditul în perioada 1948-1989
(Banks, Currency an Credit between 1948 and 1989)].
3 Romanian Historical Archives, Central Comittee fund of the Romanian Communist Party,
Chancellery, file no. 59/1963, leaves 14-16.