As oil prices increased during the 1979 energy crisis, together with the rising international interest rates, Romania found it difficult to pay it back, leading to the necessity to request the IMF a line of credit.
[2] The 1979 energy crisis combined with the increase in interest rates made Romania incapable of repaying its debts.
[5] Romania's record - having all of its debts to commercial banks paid off in full - has not been matched by any other heavily-indebted country in the world.
The country's industrial capacity was eroded as equipment grew obsolete, energy intensity increased and the standard of living deteriorated significantly.
In 1988, real GDP contracted by 0.5%, mostly due to a decline in industrial output caused by significantly increased material costs.
[18] Thus, Romania jumped from not even being in the top 10 countries with the smallest public debt (as percentage of GDP) in 1989 to being the world leader in 1990.