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Belarus Exports
Under communism, the Belorussian SSR had net industrial
and
agricultural export surpluses within the Soviet Union
until 1990,
thanks to the relatively high productivity of the
Belarusian
labor force. Belarus shipped trucks, tractors, tractor
trailers,
elevators, lathes, bearings, electric motors, computer
equipment,
synthetic yarns and fibers, tires, linoleum, flax,
textiles,
carpets, potatoes, meat, dairy products, eggs, flour, and
various
consumer goods to the other republics.
Apart from Belarus's energy situation, little had
changed in
the direction of independent Belarus's trade from its
previous
centralized planning system. In 1994 Belarus's major
trading
partners were still former Soviet republics (mainly
Russia,
Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Lithuania, and Latvia),
which
accounted for 93 percent of its exports. Exports to these
countries totaled approximately US$2.5 billion, a decrease
of 36
percent by volume over the previous year. Exports included
gasoline (198,000 tons), diesel fuel (147,000 tons), meat
and
meat products (53,000 tons), milk and milk products
(256,000
tons), refrigerators, tractors, and trucks. Belarus had a
trade
deficit with CIS countries amounting to US$614 million in
1994.
Belarus's main non-CIS trading partners in 1994 were
Germany
(21 percent of non-CIS trade), Poland (9 percent), the
United
States (7 percent), Switzerland (4 percent), Austria (4
percent),
Italy (3 percent), the Netherlands (3 percent), Hungary (3
percent), China (3 percent), Brazil (3 percent), Britain
(2
percent), and Lithuania (2 percent). Exports to non-CIS
countries
consisted mainly of energy products and heavy machinery.
Belarus
had a trade surplus of US$434 million with non-CIS
countries in
1994.
After independence and continuing into 1995, Belarus's
trade
deteriorated because import prices for energy and for raw
materials began to rise to world market levels, and demand
for
the country's exports by its major trading partners
(especially
Ukraine and Russia) declined. Payment problems within the
former
Soviet Union made the situation worse, and limited access
to
foreign financing caused the domestic economy to decline
by
further decreasing the volume of trade.
Restrictions on export quantities, imposed by the new
government to prevent low-cost Belarusian goods from being
sold
abroad in large quantities to the detriment of the
Belarusian
consumer, were relaxed in March 1994, and only certain
goods
continued to be restricted: oil and gas, electricity,
fertilizers, timber and wood products, nonferrous metals,
cereals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and leather. Exports
of
precious metals and gems had to be licensed by the State
Committee on Precious Metals and Precious Stones, and an
export
ban applied to certain medicinal herbs, animals, and some
artworks and antiques. An agreement between Belarus and
the EU
set export quotas on textiles.
As part of Belarus's pursuit of economic and monetary
integration with Russia, interstate trade regulations and
taxation were harmonized with those of Russia, and most
export
and import fees on mutual trade with Russia were abolished
by
June 1, 1994. In May 1995, Belarus and Russia eliminated
customs
checkpoints along their joint border.
Data as of June 1995
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