om drought, rapid
population growth, inflation, and civil strife. Central Europe made
considerable progress in moving toward "market-friendly" economies,
whereas the 15 ex-Soviet countries (with the notable exceptions of the
three Baltic states) typically experienced further declines in output,
sometimes as high as 30%. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock
economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over
international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology.
Internally, the central government in a number of cases is losing
control over resources as separatist regional movements - typically
based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in the successor states of
the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, and in India. In
Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of
channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase
investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition
of nearly 100 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe
is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification,
underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal
problems, the industrialized countries have inadequate resources to
deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least
from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized.
(For the specific economic problems of each country, see the
individual country entries in this volume.)

National product: GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity
- $30.7 trillion (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate: 3.2% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $5,400 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
all countries: 25%
developed countries: 5%
developing countries: 50% (1994 est.)
note: national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from
stable prices to hyperinflation

Unemployment rate: 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in
many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically
5%-12% unemployment

Exports: $4 trillion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)
commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and
services
partners: in value, about 75% of exports from the developed countries

Imports: $4.1 trillion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)
commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and
services
partners: in value, about 75% of imports