World Affairs Board - View Single Post - Afghanistan’s economy tripled in five years

maqsad · 08-30-2007, 04:32 AM

I doubt the afghans control the lucrative end of the opium trade. I don't have the stats but I think the opium crop itself is just perhaps 2 or 3 times more valuable to the farmers than regular wheat or corn or anything like that. The real markup begins from the point of arrival in an industrialized country right down the distribution chain to the consumers. The afghans might make a few hundred million themselves but it couldn't be more than a billion a year max...if that even. All depends on the figures I guess. So maybe 10% of the economy at this point is funnelled by opium profits.

08-30-2007, 04:32 AM	#16 (permalink)
maqsad Banished Join Date: 08-21-07 Posts: 91	I doubt the afghans control the lucrative end of the opium trade. I don't have the stats but I think the opium crop itself is just perhaps 2 or 3 times more valuable to the farmers than regular wheat or corn or anything like that. The real markup begins from the point of arrival in an industrialized country right down the distribution chain to the consumers. The afghans might make a few hundred million themselves but it couldn't be more than a billion a year max...if that even. All depends on the figures I guess. So maybe 10% of the economy at this point is funnelled by opium profits.