ABSTRACT
In 1984, the economic recovery within the Alliance countries was very uneven. That year, the United States witnessed inflation-adjusted GNP growth of 6.6%, whereas the average growth rates of the European Alliance countries showed a rise of about 2.75%. Inflation continued to slow down in most Alliance countries, aided, particularly in the European Alliance countries, by the marked decline in the dollar exchange rate. At the beginning of 1986, a significant improvement in economic conditions, which had already set in last year, generated unprecedented euphoria among economic policy makers about the future development of the world economy. By the middle of 1986, the overall optimism concerning the future development of the world economy had been replaced by what could be described as a general mood of anxiety. It is clear that the transatlantic dimension of the problem is of particular concern to parliamentarians gathered in the North Atlantic Assembly, due to its potential impact on the cohesion of the Alliance.
