Elvesztegetett fél évtized
A Wasted Half Decade

Economic Crisis and Crisis Management in Hungary, 1973-1979

Summary/Abstract: The article investigates the “long 1970s” (1968–1982), when Hungary re-orientated its economic and foreign trade relations. Hungary had always been a proponent of CMEA cooperation and when it realized that Socialist integration stagnated at the level of a bilateral exchange of commodities, Budapest gradually adopted a policy of opening to the world outside the CMEA. The year 1977 was a turning point in economic policy, the Hungarian elite’s way of thinking and attitude towards the West changed – not independently from the world economic crisis and its impact on Hungary. The oil crisis sharpened the latent tensions, and behind the robust growth serious problems started to surface. Although Hungary intensified its relations with the West and the Third World, the country was not able to profit from the advantages of international trade and cooperation. The paper draws on archival documents from the state-party and the economic top leadership.

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