Desarrollo energético en América Latina y la economía mundial

DESARROLLO ENERGÉTICO EN AMÉRICA LATINA y LA ECONOMíA MUNDIAL than trade preferences (Balassa 1978, Baldwin and Murray 1977) or measures to increase raw materials prices. Thus, developing countries should enter trade regotiations supporting the traditional objectives of across-the-board trade barder reduction, but firmly place themsel– ves behind reduction of non-tariff harriers. At this time MDCs are most interested in "orderIy" changes and in avoiding inflation and stag– nation. Demands for specíal preferences will faH on deaf ears. Finandng for the world's poorest countries should receive particu– lar attention. Measures to obtain more aid from OPEe countries should be attempted (Cohen 1978) . If oPEe chanelled their surplus through the IMF or the '\Vorld Bank, the financing of deficits of the developed countries may become less "automatic" but the funds could be more effectively chanelled to countries in greatest difficulty and at lowest costo Since the poorest countries aire likely to spend any funds received back in developed countries, the automatic recycIing of OPEe surpluses are being chanelled to some deCidt countries anyway, but through Eurocurrency markets. This guarantees that countries with the best credit ratings receive adjustment funds rather than those with greatest adustment difficuIties. For the world's poorest countries the IMF's Extended Financing Facility might be extended to help spread adjust. ment over a, reasonable period of time and at reasonable rates. Mechanisms for debt relief and rescheduling should be sought but only for "special" cases. Not every country needs or wants debt relief. Generalized debt relief, for all developing countries would be inef– fident as a development too1 in that it would give aid to eountries which are most indebted, but they are a1so higher income countries. It is also not cIear that oil-importing countries are in a worse debt position than before 1973. Most in faet are not (Smith, 1979). Those that are in trouble should have some mechanism available to them to reschedule. Rescheduling facilities couId be set up as part of the operations of the IMF, since a need to reschedule is not likely to be the result of only petraleum trade imbalances. It is more likeIy to reflect a broader set of desequilibria, many of which are' monetary and would faH within the purview of the IMF in any evento SUMMARY We have surveyed the adjustment problems of oil importing Latin American countries for the periad covering the so-calIed energy crisis. For the most part those countries have not suffered from economic 238