Commodity exporting nations losing out

29 July 1997

Commodity exporting nations losing out

THE commodity exporting nations have seen a significant erosion in their earnings from exports, despite sharp rises in prices.

The 1996 annual report from the Amsterdam-based Common Fund for Commodities says developing nations suffered on average a 31% decline in the terms of trade between 1980 and 1984.

Between 1990-96, commodity-exporting developing countries were losing an average of 1.6% of annual growth in their export earnings due to deterioration in their
terms of trade. The CFC says the trend is set to continue.