Short Term Interest Rate Spreads
Market participants often use short-term interest rate spreads to evaluate liquidity and credit... Read More
A simple form of the production function, which concentrated on labor and capital inputs, was used in the previous reading. The production function can be extended to include other factors of production, such as:
Therefore, the production function can be written mathematically as follows:
$$ Y= AF (N, L, H, K_{IT}, K_{NT}, K_p) $$
In this sub-reading, we discuss the effect of natural resources on economic growth.
Natural resources include land, oil, and water.
Renewable resources:
These are resources that are rechargeable. Example, a forest.
Non-renewable resources:
These are resources that are depleted after they have been used. Example, oil, and coal.
Countries with enormous natural resources experience high economic growth. For instance, Australia has a high per capita income because of its immense natural resources. However, this argument is not always valid.
Economists agree that accessibility to natural resources is crucial to economic growth. However, possessing and producing natural resources is not required for a country to attain a high-income level. For example, Japan has experienced high economic growth despite its limited natural resources. Ironically, Nigeria has extensive oil reserves but experiences deplorable economic growth.
More interestingly, some countries suffer from having abundant resources. Two reasons can explain this:
Question
Country X has slow GDP growth, immense natural resources, and well-advanced economic institutions. The least likely factor for the current condition of GDP growth in this country is:
- Improved manufacturing exports.
- High level of natural resource exports.
- A consistently strong currency.
Solution
The correct answer is A.
Since this country has many natural resources, developed economic institutions, and slow GDP growth, it must be suffering from Dutch disease. That is, the high demand for natural resource export solely drives the currency appreciation. Consequently, other parts of the economy, such as the manufacturing sector, become uncompetitive, making it shrink.
Reading 9: Economic Growth
LOS 9 (f) Explain how natural resources affect economic growth and evaluate the argument that limited availability of natural resources constrains economic growth.