earnings fromprocessed commodities isvastlylowerthanforotherdeveloping countries (seeappendix table3). 32.Withrespect toexportperformance, available evidence indicates thatthe levelofexports percapitaisingeneral muchlowerforland-locked developing countries thanforotherdeveloping ~ountriDS, thatexports ar~aImallproportion ofgrossdomestic product, andthattheland-locked developing countries' ahareof worldtradehastendedtodecline. In198e,theonlyland-locked developing countries whOlepercapitaexporta excee~ed theaverage ofnon-oil developing countriel -i.e.'135-wereBotlwana, Swaziland andZimbabwe. Foralltheother land-locked developing countries, exceptBolivia andParaguay, exporta percapita werelessthanhalfthataverage. Andforlevencountries, exporta percapitawere les8than$25percapita-Burkina Faso,$101Chad,$171LaoPeople'l Democratic Republic, $81Lelotho, '13,Mali,$231Nepal, $81andRwanda, '19.Inthesame year,exports exceeded 20percentofgrosldomestic product inonlyfour countries, Botswana, Swaziland, ZambiaandZimbabwe (.eeappendix table4).Data for13land-locked developing co~ntries overtheperiod 1970-1984/85 alsoindicate thatthesecountries hadadeclining shareofbothdeveloping-country andworld exports formostoftheirtrading commodities <leeappendix table5).Itisalso noteworthy thatland-locked countries tendtoexperience ahigher-than-average instability ofexportearnings because oftherelatively highdegreeofexport commodity concentration citedabove. 4Q/ 33.Theimportstructure ofland-locked developing countries issimilar tothatof otherdeveloping countries inthatmanufactured good.,machinery andtransport equip.~ent, crudepetrolewn andpetro1ewn products constitute alargeproportion of thetotalimportvalue. (Fortheevolution oftheimportvalue,percapitaimports andproportion ofGDP,seeappendix table6.)Butincontrast tootherdeveloping countries, land-locked countriel procure alignificant proportion oftheirimports fromneighbouring countriel ratherthanfromdi.tant over.eas suppliers. This adaptation inthedirecti.on oftradeofland-locked developing countries enables importers torealize largelavingl ont:anlport COltl. However, itisnotalways tbecal.thatthe••savings arefullyreflected inlowerimportprice., since producers inregional .upp1ying countries areabletoinflatetheir••llinqpriceR tobuyersintheland-locked developing countries. I •••A/44/588 English PaCjJe17 34.Inca.e.of.evereshortages -whichhappen. quiteoften-theimporter. may preferregional suppliers because oftheurgency an~theuncertainties aboutthe delivery timesforgoodstramoverseas eventhoughtheoverseay supplier.' prices maybelower. Buyersinland-locked countries remotefromworldcentre. mayof coursealsonotbefUllyfamiliar withthestructure ofworldmarketprice.for someoftheproducts andthislackofknowledge couldbeexploited totheir disadvantage. 35.Throughout the1970a,anincreasing proportion oftheimports ofland-lo~ked developing countries waspurchased fr~mother ~evelopiu~ ~lountries onthesame continent. By1987,only4outofasampleof15land-locked developing countries obtained lessthan25percentoftheirimports through ~radewiththo.e countrie., Burundi, Central African Republic, Niger an~Cha~(.eeappendix table7).Imports through intra-trade withdeveloping co~ntries onthesame continent exceed 45percentofthetotalimports ofBolivia (52percent),Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malawi (51percent)andNepal(49percent),and exceed 25percentofthetotalimports ofAfghanistan (2~~~.cent),Burkina Faso (3Jpercent),Malawi (43percent),Mali(31per c~nt),Paraguay (35percent), Rwan~a (27percent),Uganda (25percent),Zambia (27percent)andZimbabwe (30percent). Themostimportant regional suppliers ofland-locked developing countries are,Argentina (11percentofBolivia's imp~rts in1y:6,14percentof Paraguay'. in1986),Brazil (39percentofBolivia's imports in1986132percent ofParaguay's in1986),Coted'Ivoire (25percentofBurkino Faso'.imports in 19861 2~percentofMali'sin198619percentof~iger's in1986),Cameroon (12percentofChad'simports in1986)1Nigeria (10per.centofNiger's imports in 1986)1Kenya(24percentofRwanda's imports in198613:percen~ofUganda's in 198613percentofBurundi's in1986)1SouthAfr\ca (40percentofMalawi's imports in1986120percentofZimbabwe's in1986181percentofSwaziland's in 1985)1India(30percentofNepal's i~ports in1986),Thailand (47percentofthe LaoPeople's Democratic Republic's imports in1986)1SovietUnion(39percentof
**Analysis**
This text appears to be discussing the economic characteristics of land-locked developing countries, specifically their export performance, import structure, and trade patterns. The text highlights the challenges faced by these countries, such as lower export levels, declining share of world trade, and higher instability of export earnings. The analysis also touches on the regional trade patterns of these countries, including their reliance on neighboring countries for imports.

**Category**
International trade