portant. By extension, it can be seen that the West's willingness to help the former Soviet nations now could prove to be a benefit to the overall world economy in the future. Specifically, the provision of aid at this time can help to stabilize the economic status of those nations, thereby opening up new investment opportunities for international business.
In the past few months, Russian President Boris Yeltsin has been trying to make the shift to a market economy by following an austerity program which has been named "shock therapy" by Western observers. This economic "shock therapy" includes such radical reforms as "hiking prices and cutting state subsidies." The idea behind cutting state subsidies is to reduce government spending. The idea behind raising prices is to bolster the economy by encouraging businesses to increase their stock. Thus, "higher prices were intended to lure more goods into the shops, in the hope that prices would stabilize when supply and demand came into balance." However, Yeltsin's program has resulted in causing more problems than benefits. Following the freeing of prices, the Russian Republic began experiencing an extreme level of inflation. In fact, it has been claimed that the republic is currently undergoing a period of "hyperinflation." In January of 1992, it was reported that "inflation across the former Soviet Union is 450 percent and climbing." As a result of this inflation, the prices on essential goods have skyrocketed. This has made it very difficult for the average Russian citizen to obtain food and other necessities of life. The elimination of government subsidies in the field of industry has also had a detrimental impact on the average Russian. Specifically, it has resulted in widespread unemployment throughout the republic. Without state assistance, an increasing number of large industries are going out of business, thereby causing joblessness "to rise sharply." It may be ...