From Natural Resources to the Knowledge Economy: Trade and Job Quality

This book "addresses three concerns about the structure of trade in Latin American and Caribbean economies. The first is whether natural wealth and exports of natural resource-intensive commodities hampers economic development. The second concern is that natural resources create a concentrated export structure which exacerbates economic volatility and thus reduces growth. The third concern is that international trade might eliminate jobs. The wide-ranging report cites the experience of Australia, Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States, as well as some Latin American countries, to show how successful economies have been built on the basis of primary commodity exports." By David de Ferranti, Guillermo E. Perry, Daniel Lederman, William F. Maloney, The World Bank, 2002. Note especially chapter 4, "Chapter 4: Recent LAC Experiences: The Role of Knowledge and Institutions".