MATERIAL SHORTAGE STUDY: AN ANALYSIS OF SELECTED COMMODITIES AND IDENTIFICATION OF CAUSAL FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SUPPLY SHORTFALLS

This study focused primarily on Federal policies that led to material shortages and curtailment of plant capacity expansion and secondarily on the likelihood of shortages recurring over the near term 1976-77. Commodities studied included steel, aluminum, copper, zinc, benzene, ethylene, LPG, ammonia, urea, plastics, cement, lumber, and pulp. It was concluded that: Federal policies were found to be direct contributors to shortage conditions in 25 of the 26 commodities analyzed; those Federal policies and regulations which appeared to have the most significant impact on material shortages and capacity curtailment are price controls, taxation, energy, environmental, and fiscal and monetary (including antitrust); for most industries, the interaction between several causal factors rather than one factor led to shortage conditions.

• Corporate Authors:

  Little (Arthur D), Incorporated

  Acorn Park
  Cambridge, MA  United States  02140

  Department of Commerce

  Domestic Business Policy Analysis Staff
  Washington, DC  United States 
• Publication Date: 1974-12-20

Media Info

• Pagination: 403 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aluminum; Ammonia; Benzene; Cement; Chemical industry; Chromium; Commodities; Copper; Energy; Equipment; Ethylene glycol; Ethylenes; Federal government; Fertilizers; Iron and steel industry; Laws; Liquefied petroleum gas; Lumber; Magnesium; Manganese; Materials; Metal industry; Plastics; Policy; Prices; Raw materials; Regulations; Shortages; Silicon; Steel; Surveys; Taxation; Urea; Wood products; Zinc
• Identifier Terms: National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
• Uncontrolled Terms: Causes; Liquid petroleum gas
• Old TRIS Terms: Commodity management; Environmental policy act; Government policies; Material surveys; Pulp
• Subject Areas: Energy; Geotechnology; Highways; Law; Materials; Policy;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00092579
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: DOC-DBPAS-75-01 Final Rpt.
• Contract Numbers: C-5-36231
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 5 1975 12:00AM