The German Democratic Republic

Abstract

Since the middle of the '70s the overall economic growth of the GDR has slowed somewhat. This decline is attributable first and foremost to the decrease in the growth rates of industrial production. However, the discrepancy from the original rather modest five-year plan target (a 5.0% yearly average) will not be as dramatic as in some CMEA countries. Even so, the goals of the five-year plan will definitely not be achieved. In 1979 the growth of national income in the GDR was about 4%, which was more than was expected. A lower economic growth was anticipated because of tense supply conditions. Both the import restrictions in 1977 and 1978 and in particular the extreme winter weather at the beginning of 1979 contributed to the problem. In fact, the yearly economic plan was revised downward at the beginning of 1979. In the first half-year less than half of the planned economic growth was achieved. In the second half-year it was evidently possible to make up most of the shortfall. The growth in industrial production (1979: 4.8%) was entirely due to increases in labor productivity. While the number of employed increased by 0.7%, this was offset by a reduction in the volume of labor as a result of expanded vacation terms and a reduction in weekly work time. However, the number of overtime hours that had to be worked to make up for discrepancies from the plan as a result of shortages in supplies is not known. The hard winter weather brought setbacks in the mining of