SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The aim of this study was to discuss the causes of the deterioration in the balance of Iran's foreign trade in agricultural goods, with special reference to cereals and sugar in the period 1960-75. To this end, trade and determinants of trade were studied. Trade was studied to detect any deterioration in the balance of trade in relation to changes in supply and demand and to show whether causes were external or internal. Aspects of trade studied were amount, composition and direction. The supply study discussed the problems of the Iranian agricultural sector and those of the cereals and sugar sub-sectors which mainly arose from inappropriate government policies. The demand study discussed the causes of changes in consumption of and demand for cereals and sugar. The study was divided into four parts comprising 16 chapters. Part I was a background study to the thesis including problems of agricultural production and trade in LDCs, the history of Iran's foreign trade, trends in Iranian foreign trade in agricultural goods and patterns of food supply and demand in Iran. Part II was devoted to study of the potential, shortcomings and pattern of development of Iranian agriculture and appraisal of government agricultural policies. Part III was concerned with the study of determinants of Iran's foreign trade in cereals. After analysis of world production and trade in cereals, trends in Iran's foreign cereal trade were discussed as a prelude to examination of Iran's cereal supply and demand position. Part IV examined determinants of Iran's foreign trade in sugar. After a review of world background and the history of sugar production, processing and trade in Iran, supply and demand patterns in Iran in relation to government policies were studied. The thesis concluded by showing the causes and degrees of change in Iran's food import dependence. It showed that Iran's problem of a fast- growing trade deficit in agricultural products was a function of demand outstripping the capacity of an inefficient and incompetent agriculture mainly arising from the failure of government policies.