LONDON-Heads I Win, Tails You Lose

fie interest in the markets of fast developing East European countries particularly the GDR, Czechoslovakia and Poland. But unless the US has established a rapport with the USSR, it may not be easy for it to promote economic relations directly with these countries. Hence as a tactical measure, business circles and industrial magnates in the US might have been prepared to establish close economic ties with the USSR. An example of how trade between the US and East European countries has increased since the detente can be seen with respect to Czechoslovakia. While trade between Czechoslovakia and USA increased from 139 million Czech crowns in 1965 to 196 million crowns in 1970, i e, 40 per cent over five years, it shot up to 417 million Czech crowns by 1972, i e, 110 per cent in 2 years. The spurt in American trade with Czechoslovakia seems to have followed the sharp increase in the Soviet trade with US.