It should be clearly understood that the foregoing
 figures are an approximate estimate. They
are based, so far as is possible, upon data published
py the Commissariat of Finance and the Commissariat
 of Foreign Trade. When official data
were not available, we made our own calculations,
asing in some instances those applied by Soviet
statisticians and economists. Not infrequently
Soviet official calculations were contradictory:
the figures relating to international indebtedness
for the period 1922-27, published in 1928 by the
Commissariat of Trade differed from those published
by the same Commissariat a few years before, and
from ‘those published by Mr. Engeev of the Comnissariat

 of Finance. All Soviet data has been
checked as far as possible by means of information
rom different sources, both Soviet and foreign,
-elating to the complete period, 1924 to 1931.
On the whole, Soviet figures show a much higher
udverse balance than that given in our estimate,
3ut a critical analysis of these Soviet figures reveals
double-counting of some items.
The possibility is not precluded that certain
items relating to indebtedness, to movements of
gold and other ‘precious metals, and also to
axpenditure abroad in concealed forms, have eluded
notice. But we do not think that the statistics
which we present differ materially from true figures.

VI. INFLUENCE OF THE WORLD CRISIS.

The world depression affected the balance of
payments of the U.S.S.R. in two ways :
(a) Whilst the fall of prices diminished the
income derived by the U.S.S.R. from exports, it
=nabled Soviet trade organisations largely to
increase the quantities of goods imported.
(b) The general insecurity on the world credit
markets undoubtedly worsened the position of the
U.S.S.R. as a borrower, but compensation for this
unfavourable factor was found in the liquidity of
the world short-term market, arising from the
inability of enormous capital resources to find
profitable employment and the willingness of the
industrial interests, hard hit by the crisis. to
finance Soviet Russia’s imports.
In 1928/29, the agricultural depression had
already brought down the prices of most of the
chief commodities exported by the U.S.S.R., as,
for instance, wheat, rye, oats, butter, eggs, mining
products, timber and finished goods. Despite the
‘act that exports increased in that year in comsarison
 with 1927/28, they remained far below
che figure planned, and there was practically no
favourable trade balance.
In the following year there was again a marked
increase of exports, but it was chiefly attributable
to large exports of wheat and other cereals. By
throwing on the market quantities of goods larger

‘han those disposed of in previous years at prices
ower than world prices, the Soviet Union counterralanced
 the fall in these world prices. Between
928/29 and 1929/30, exports of cereals and techtical
 crops increased several times in quantity,
while their value rose from 83.1 million roubles
0 195.1 million roubles; of timber in quantity
rom 4.8 million tons to 7.3 million tons, in value
only from 138.6 million roubles to 180.2 million
oubles. In the same period, whereas food and
c<indred products exported increased in quantity
rom 457 thousand to 540 thousand tons, their
salue actually fell from 79.9 million roubles to 71.8
nillion roubles. © Only mining products showed
ncrease in quantity and value alike.
In the beginning of 1930/31, the expansion of
soviet expgrts continued. This circumstance
ntensified the anti-dumping campaign which had
;rown in force since the second half of 1930.
from October to December 1930, exports
ncreased to 296.7 million roubles in comparison
vith 262,5 million roubles for the same period of the
srevious year. Of all commodities exported,
igricultural commodities showed the largest
ncrease. In the first quarter of 1929/30, they
-epresented a value of 101 million roubles, and in
1930/31, 142 million roubles, Thus they increased
wv 429.