Seventeenth report on the activities of the Monetary Committee.

Abstract

1975 was marked by an economic recession such as has not occurred since the 1930s. It affected all the industrialized countries and the non-oil-producing developing countries; its repercussions 'vere reflected in international trade, which declined sharply in volume. The balance of payments situation in 1975 was characterized by a substantial reduction in the OPEC surplus, a considerable improvement for the major industrial countries as a group, and a deterioration for other groups of countries, the non-oil-producing developing countries, the smaller OECD members and the centrally planned economies.