Data on gross output and national income in absolute terms have not been published. Official statistics on these social accounts have been limited to a few index series for overall, productive sector, and per capita values and a percentage breakdown of gross output and national income by productive sector. The arbitrary nature of the pricing system and differences in statistical treatment compared to Western practice preclude a direct comparison of the published growth rates of the economy and its components with similar rates in Western countries. The same holds true for comparisons of economic structure. Independent studies of the economy by Western scholars in Western statistical terms yielded significantly lower rates of growth and a different structure of economic activities from those officially announced.
According to official data, national income (net material product, which excludes private and government services not directly related to production) more than doubled between 1960 and 1970, and industrial output more than tripled. Agricultural production, by contrast, increased by less than one-third. The rates of economic and industrial growth, even when translated into Western terms, have been relatively high and among the highest in countries of Eastern Europe. Such high growth rates have usually been associated with early stages of industrial development. The high growth rates were made possible by an official policy that allocated more than 30 percent of national income to investment. Growth rates in the 1966-70 period were somewhat lower than in the preceding five years, with the exception of agriculture, the performance of which was slightly better.
The predominant growth of industry has been a direct consequence of the leadership's policy. This policy was reflected in a disproportionately large allocation of investment to industry at the expense of other economic sectors. In the 1966-70 period, for instance, industry received 55 percent of total investment—60 percent if the construction industry is included—compared to less than 13 percent granted to agriculture.
Within industry preponderant emphasis has been placed on the development of the capital goods sector at the expense of consumer goods. Whereas total industrial output increased at an average annual rate of 11.8 percent from 1966 to 1970, production of capital goods rose at a rate of 12.7 percent, and production of consumer goods grew by only 9.5 percent annually.
Table 4. National Income (Net Material Product) of Romania, by Economic Sector,
1960, 1967, and 1970 (in percent)
| Economic Sector | 1960 | 1967 | 1970 |
| Industry and handicrafts | 44.1 | 51.7 | 60.8 |
| Construction | 9.0 | 8.4 | 9.6 |
| Agriculture | 33.1 | 28.6 | 20.0 |
| Transport and communications | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.2 |
| Trade | 6.5 | 4.6 | 3.2 |
| Other sectors | 3.5 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
| Total | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Source: Adapted from Anuarul Statistic al Republicii Socialiste Romania, 1970 (Statistical Yearbook of the Socialist Republic of Romania, 1970), Bucharest, 1970; and U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Technical Services, Joint Publications Research Service— JPRS Series (Washington), Translations on Eastern Europe: Economic and Scientific Affairs, "Development of National Income Discussed," Probleme Economice, Bucharest, April 1971, (JPRS 53,521, Series No. 491, 1971). | |||
As a consequence of the uneven sectoral growth, the structure of the economy changed significantly between 1960 and 1970. According to official data the contribution of industry to the net material product rose from 44 to 61 percent, whereas that of agriculture declined from 33 to 20 percent (see table 4). The relative importance of construction and transport rose slightly, but that of trade declined by half. A strikingly different structure of the economy emerges in terms of the Western concept of gross national product (GNP), which includes housing and services and treats both taxes and subsidies in a different manner. The contribution of industry was less than that of agriculture in 1960, but by 1967 it had increased more rapidly than is indicated by the official data (see table 5). The role of agriculture, on the other hand, declined more rapidly.
Published labor statistics leave many serious gaps, and unofficially reported data do not always agree with official figures in the annual statistical yearbooks. Information released on the size of the economically active population is limited to percentage changes over the years.
The economically active population increased by only 3.5 percent from 1960 to 1967 and remained stationary thereafter to 1969. During the ten-year period the number of persons active in industry increased by half, whereas the number of those engaged in agriculture declined by 19 percent. Nevertheless, in 1970 about half the population was still engaged in agriculture, and only 22 percent were active in industry.
Table 5. Gross National Product of Romania, by Sector of Origin,
1960 and 1967 (in percent)