The wheels of a command economy: allocating Soviet vehicles
Authors: Lazarev V.1; Gregory P.R.2
Source: The Economic History Review, Volume 55, Number 2, May 2002 , pp. 324-348(25)
Publisher: Blackwell Publishing
Abstract:
Using original archival sources, this article traces the allocation of vehicles by the Soviet economy and shows the complicated reality of the systems operation. Planned distribution was anything but orderly as decrees overturned quarterly plans, wholesalers ignored planning instructions by keeping vehicles for themselves or redirecting them to others, and the producer intervened through its control of the planning aftermarket. Existing stocks of vehicles were redistributed by administrative mobilizations that were resisted and thwarted by those losing vehicles. Behind the scenes, grey markets reallocated used vehicles.
Language: English
Document Type: Research article
Affiliations: 1: University of Houston and Hoover Institution 2: University of Houston

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