What kept the Axis alive was trade with the Soviet Union and its importance cannot be understated. Amongst the raw materials purchased in the USSR there were alloy metals, Grain was imported at such a large volume that some of it was drawn from the Soviet national grain reserve. Germany reciprocated with manufactured goods, particularly machine tools. Production for deliveries towards the Soviet Union had the same priority as for the Wehrmacht itself.
Just as Britain had to become dependent as a precondition/result of receiving American aid, so did Germany have the prospect of dependency towards the USSR. Any consolidation of its existing European empire would require a greater level of Soviet trade. The export of machine tools aided the Red Army’s expansion. The Soviets were even in a position to request German synthetic fuel and rubber technology, though that was denied. Soviet-Japanese rapprochement in April 1941 –the Japanese were now focused on a strike against the Western powers- opened up the possibility of a move that could truly turn the tables on the Anglo-American power bloc: an Eurasian coalition of Germany, Italy, Russia and Japan. Yet this would cause even more dependency, as the central power in such a coalition would be the one that would gain the most.