intergovernmental bodies, and there seemed to be a clear trend towards greater financial discipline. The 0.7 per cent assessed "real growth" of the proposed programme budget was certainly an achievement. Two comments, however, needed to be made. 2. First, the actual increase in the proposed budget over that for the current biennium was 9 per cent, and that actual increase would have to be borne by Member States. Such an increase was by no means negligible when acquiring hard currency was, for the majority of States and in particular the developing ones, an economic burden. What was more, the prices of the goods and services that those countries exported did not automatically increase with inflationJ on the contrary, deteriorating terms of trade meant that more had to be exported to meet external costs. Secondly, the figures did not include all foreseeable expenses for the biennium, the real rate of growth would be higher than 0.7 per cent as a consequence of later supplementary budget proposals submitted by the Secretariat. Delegations could only hope, therefore, that revised appropriations would be kept to a minimumJ indeed, the estimates recommended by the Advisory Committee still allowed important reserves that could be used during the forthcoming biennium for the financing of new and unforeseen activities. 3. The Secretariat still tended to take an alarmingly broad view of legislative mandates, which resulted in overestimates of expenditure in many cases. It was becoming impossible to request a report or study, still less an international meeting, without being presented with a long list of financial implications for temporary assistance, consultants and expert groups, even though there was a continuous increase in the number of established posts within the Secretariat. The Administration was becoming more and more expensive without necessarily becoming correspondingly more effective. That could not and should not continue. 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing the budget and financial discipline of the United Nations, specifically the proposed programme budget and the concerns of Member States regarding the increase in costs. The text highlights the need for financial responsibility and efficiency in the Secretariat's operations, suggesting that the budget should be managed in a way that balances growth with fiscal discipline.

**Category**
Economic development, International trade