ABSTRACT
The planning system in the statist countries of Eastern Europe in the 1980s still closely resembled that developed in the Soviet Union in the 1930s and exported to the other countries after the Second World War. For the rest, although there are many differences between their planning systems and there have been many changes since the end of the 1950s, they exhibit sufficient similarity and continuity for them to be regarded as variants of a centrally planned and administered command system with clearly defined characteristics. The principal method used by the planning authorities in drawing up the plan is that of material balances, A material balance is a statement of the estimated potential availability of a good or service set against its estimated use. Wages and salaries are based on centrally determined rates that vary according to skill, geographical location and industry priority.
