Post-war recovery proved to be difficult. Britain, which was the world’s leading economy in the pre-war period, in particular faced grave crises. Britain found it difficult to recapture its earlier position of dominance in the Indian market and to compete with Japan internationally. Both India and Japan had developed industries during the war, Britain owed a great war debt to the USA, as it had borrowed liberally from the US. The war had also led to an economic boom as there had been a large increase in demand for production and employment. When the war boom ended it led to huge job losses as the government reduced war expenditures. In Britain, one in every five workers was without a job. Many agricultural economies also faced a crisis. Before the war, eastern Europe was a major supplier of wheat in the world market. War disrupted production and as a result wheat production in Canada, Australia and America expanded dramatically. But when the war ended,wheat production in Europe revived and there was a glut of wheat output. Grain prices fell,incomes declined and farmers fell deeper into debt. Only the US was able to recover quickly.