The big push, natural resource booms and growth

simple application of big-push reasoning suggests that natural resource boo ms can be important catalysts for development in poorer countries. In this paper we present evidence from seven Latin American countries that natural resource booms are sometimes accompanied by declining per-capita GDP. We pr esent a model with natural resources, increasing returns in the spirit of b ig push models, and expectations to clarify some of the reasons this may ha ppen. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.