Fighting speculation and breach of trading rules in Bashkiria in the second half of the 1930s

This article considers archive documents which have never before been scientifically analyzed, dealing with main abuses in the state-owned and cooperative trade in Bashkiria after the abolition of the rationing system. In the open trading conditions, the spread of speculation in Bashkiria was driven by the chronic deficit of foodstuffs and manufactured goods with the simultaneous growth of people’s income. Besides, there was poor stock-taking of inventory holdings in storehouses and shops. Particular attention is paid to finding the reasons for and peculiarities of rule-breaking in trade on the territory of the republic. The most wide-spread violations breach of trading rules included false measure in size and weight, shortchanging of customers and substitution of grades of quality. The conclusion made is that abuses in the conditions of universal deficit, when people had to stand in lines for many hours on a regular basis, speculation and breach of trading rules became a real threat of frustration of the goods turnover plan in the republic.