The Impact of Natural Resource Abundance on Manufacturing Exports from a Technology Intensity Perspective

Abstract

The association between natural resource abundance and economic performance has been the common concern of economists and political philosophers for centuries. While plenty of resources is a blessing for some countries, others suffer from the paradox of plenty known as Dutch disease. This study aims to search the interaction between natural resource rents and the manufacturing exports of the 34 Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) countries between the years 1990-2015, depending on the technology intensity of sectors using the gravity model of trade. The findings of the study indicate that there is Dutch disease in all of the classifications of manufacturing industries. In other words, for the 34 OECD countries, the upsurge in natural resource rents has an impact on the manufacturing sector’s performance in all subcategories.