Dutch Disease is an economic concept that happens when one sector of an economy experiences exponential growth and other sectors decline. A common example is when natural resources are booming, the currency of a country goes up, and then it has a negative impact on other aspects of the economy. Dutch Disease is often common in countries that rely heavily on the exportation of natural resources. Origins of the Dutch Disease Dutch Disease originated from an analysis of the economic situation in the Netherlands that appeared in The Economist magazine in 1977. In 1959 the Western European country discovered natural gas fields, which led to an increase in revenue because of exportation of natural gas. On the downside, the boom in natural gas exports led to high unemployment and a decline in manufacturing. This happened because the increase in export earnings led to a bump in the exchange rate and made other goods in the country more expensive to export. When goods become more expensive to export, other countries may be more reluctant to purchase them and turn to cheaper alternatives instead. The outcome is