Development of foreign trade and balance of payments in the czech republic, hungary and poland

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to analyse one of the greatest problems in the process of transformation of these three economies in the years 1990-1996 - foreign trade development. Following political changes in the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, economic changes had to be implemented that also implied changes in foreign trade. These crucial changes include abolition of foreign trade monopoly and its liberalisation, introduction of stepwise convertibility of national currencies (for transactions of balance of payments on the current account at first), changes in exchange rate policy, price liberalisation and territorial reorientation of foreign trade. All these changes were reflected in foreign trade development in all three countries compared.