Inside Report (1)

Who may be affected most by the Iraq-Iran war -- outside of the participants, that is? Probably Brazil. The war has cost Brazil about half kof its oil imports. So, in desperation, the Brazilians have turned for help to . . . the Soviet Union.

Petrobras, the state oil enterprise, is purchasing 3 million barrels from the Soviets in the three months ending in December to help ease the supply crunch.

The Soviet purchases are a temporary solution and bring in only 24,000 barrels daily -- a mere drop in the bucket for Brazil, which had been importing 850,000 barrels a day before the war.

Brazil also is getting oil from Mexico, Venezuela, Saudi ARabia, and Nigeria, but it still needs to find other sources. Petrobras officials are scouring the world for oil.

Meanwhile, gasoline, diesel, and fuel oil prices have gone up 30 percent in the past six months to reflect the higher prices being paid by Brazil for oil on world markets and to encourage Brazilians to use less fuel.m