Development of the national economy

During the development of the national economy, remarkable results were achieved during the First Republic, which Czechoslovakia ranked among the economically developed countries. Industrial production in 1929 exceeded the pre-war level by more than 40%, agricultural production increased by 28% over the same period. Economic integration has progressed and Czechoslovakia has become a single economic unit, even though still regionally unbalanced, mainly due to the development of the internal market. The limits of the domestic market forced the Czechoslovak industry to fight more and more for foreign markets and to face strong international competition. During 1929, the first sales difficulties affected the favorable development. The global economic crisis has manifested itself with some delay. The decline in production was initially gradual, and it was not until mid-1931 that the global credit and currency crisis took a sharp turn and took full effect. The industrial production of Czechoslovakia decreased to 60% of the pre-crisis state. It was not until 1934 that there was a gradual rise in production, which, among other things, supported the export of weapons and government orders for the army as a result of the impending German aggression. The recovery peaked in 1937, but the economic cycle was no longer enough to take off. The difficulties on world markets and the subsequent disintegration of Czechoslovakia ended the promising economic development of the first Czechoslovak Republic.