International barter transactions are becoming increasingly important in world trade. The following article examines the reasons for this as well as its implications for competition and the international division of labour, and presents an assessment of future developments.

Unconventional forms of international trade (such as counterpurchase, compensation deals and barter) have assumed rapidly growing importance, especially in many developing countries, as a consequence of the fall in commodity prices and the worsening of international debt problems since the oil...