Tax Policy and International Competitiveness / Lawrence H. Summers.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Summers, Lawrence H.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w2007.

NBER working paper series no. w2007

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 1986.

Summary:

This paper examines the interactions between tax policy, international capitol mobility, and international competitiveness. It demonstrates that tax policies which stimulate national investment without affecting national savings must inevitably lead to deterioration in a country's trade balance in the short and intermediate run. This conclusion, which contradicts a great deal of popular rhetoric highlights the importance of considering the macroeconomic as well as the microeconomic aspects of tax changes. Yore generally, the effects of tax policies depend critically on the extent of the international capital flows which they generate. The paper examines the issue of international capital mobility both theoretically and empirically. A variety of considerations suggest that while tax policies could generate large capital flows, governments pursue policies which tend to inhibit capital flows following tax changes. This makes the analysis of tax policies difficult.

Notes:

Print version record

August 1986.