[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/wbk/wbrwps/5311.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Fiscal competition in developing countries : a survey of the theoretical and empirical literature

Author

Listed:
  • Madies, Thierry
  • Dethier, Jean-Jacques
Abstract
The last two decades have witnessed a sharp increase in foreign direct investment (FDI) flows and increased competition among developing countries to attract FDI, resulting in higher investment incentives offered by host governments and removal of restrictions on operations of foreign firms in their countries. Fiscal competition between governments can take the form of business tax rebates, productivity-enhancing public infrastructure or investment incentives such as tax holidays, accelerated depreciation allowances or loss carry-forward for income tax purposes. It can take place between governments of different countries or between local governments within the same country. This paper surveys the recent theoretical and empirical economic literature on decentralization which attempts to answer three questions. First, does theoretical literature on fiscal competition and"bidding races"contribute to a better understanding of such phenomenon in developing countries? Second, are FDI inflows in developing countries sensitive to fiscal incentives and is there empirical evidence of strategic behavior from the part of developing countries in order to attract FDI? Third, what evidence is there about fiscal competition among local governments in developing countries?

Suggested Citation

  • Madies, Thierry & Dethier, Jean-Jacques, 2010. "Fiscal competition in developing countries : a survey of the theoretical and empirical literature," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5311, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:5311
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2010/05/17/000158349_20100517095203/Rendered/PDF/WPS5311.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Emilie Caldeira & Martial Foucault & Gregoire Rota-Graziosi, 2015. "Decentralization in Africa and the nature of local governments’ competition: evidence from Benin," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 22(6), pages 1048-1076, December.
    2. Ludema, Rodney D. & Wooton, Ian, 2000. "Economic geography and the fiscal effects of regional integration," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(2), pages 331-357, December.
    3. Alexandre A. Porsse & Eduardo A. Haddad & Eduardo P. Ribeiro, 2006. "Modeling Interjurisdictional Tax Competition In A Federal System," Anais do XXXIV Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 34th Brazilian Economics Meeting] 54, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    4. Zissimos, Ben & Wooders, Myrna, 2005. "Relaxing Tax Competition through Public Good Differentation," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 737, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    5. Blomström, Magnus & Kokko, Ari, 2003. "The Economics of Foreign Direct Investment Incentives," EIJS Working Paper Series 168, Stockholm School of Economics, The European Institute of Japanese Studies.
    6. Ruud A. de Mooij & Sjef Ederveen, 2008. "Corporate tax elasticities: a reader's guide to empirical findings," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 24(4), pages 680-697, winter.
    7. Shah, Anwar, 2004. "Fiscal decentralization in developing and transition economies: progress, problems, and the promise," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3282, The World Bank.
    8. Breuillé, Marie-Laure & Madiès, Thierry & Taugourdeau, Emmanuelle, 2010. "Gross versus net equalization scheme in a federation with decentralized leadership," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 205-214, September.
    9. Devereux, Michael P. & Lockwood, Ben & Redoano, Michela, 2008. "Do countries compete over corporate tax rates?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(5-6), pages 1210-1235, June.
    10. Torfinn Harding & Beata Smarzynska Javorcik, 2007. "Developing economies and international investors. Do investment promotion agencies bring them together?," Discussion Papers 513, Statistics Norway, Research Department.
    11. Michael Keen, 1998. "Vertical Tax Externalities in the Theory of Fiscal Federalism," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 45(3), pages 454-485, September.
    12. Luiz de Mello, 2007. "The Brazilian 'Tax War': The Case of Value-Added Tax Competition among the States," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 544, OECD Publishing.
    13. Tugrul Gurgur & Anwar Shah, 2014. "Localization and corruption: panacea or pandora's box?," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 15(1), pages 109-136, May.
    14. Brennan,Geoffrey & Buchanan,James M., 2006. "The Power to Tax," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521027922, September.
    15. Luiz de Mello, 2008. "The Brazilian ``Tax War''," Public Finance Review, , vol. 36(2), pages 169-193, March.
    16. Kind, H.J. & Midelfart Knarvik, K.H. & Schjelderup, G., 1998. "Industrial Agglomeration and Capital Taxation," Papers 7/98, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration-.
    17. Andreas Haufler & Sven Stöwhase, 2003. "Taxes as a Determinant for Foreign Direct Investment in Europe," ifo DICE Report, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 1(02), pages 45-51, February.
    18. Razin, Assaf & Sadka, Efraim, 1991. "International tax competition and gains from tax harmonization," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 69-76, September.
    19. Sebastian Hauptmeier & Ferdinand Mittermaier & Johannes Rincke, 2008. "Fiscal Competition over Taxes and Public Inputs: Theory and Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 2499, CESifo.
    20. Rashmi Banga, 2003. "Impact of government policies and investment agreements on FDI inflows," Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, New Delhi Working Papers 116, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, New Delhi, India.
    21. Andreas Haufler & Sven Stöwhase, 2003. "Taxes as a Determinant for Foreign Direct Investment in Europe," ifo DICE Report, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 1(2), pages 45-51, 02.
    22. Michela Redoano, 2007. "Fiscal Interactions Among European Countries. Does the EU Matter?," CESifo Working Paper Series 1952, CESifo.
    23. repec:ces:ifodic:v:1:y:2003:i:2:p:14567960 is not listed on IDEAS
    24. Jacques Morisset & Kelly Andrews-Johnson, 2004. "The Effectiveness of Promotion Agencies at Attracting Foreign Direct Investment," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 15073.
    25. Boadway, Robin & Shah, Anwar, 1992. "How tax incentives affect decisions to invest in developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1011, The World Bank.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Moore, Mick, 2014. "Revenue Reform and Statebuilding in Anglophone Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 99-112.
    2. Cooray, Arusha & Tamazian, Artur & Vadlamannati, Krishna Chaitanya, 2014. "What drives FDI policy liberalization? An empirical investigation," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 179-189.
    3. Fred Eka, 2019. "IDE chinois et croissance économique des pays d'Afrique sub-saharienne : approche par la MMG en données de panel," Working Papers hal-02141049, HAL.
    4. Fred EKA, 2019. "IDE chinois et croissance économique des pays d'Afrique sub-saharienne : approche par la MMG en données de panel," Working Papers 2018-2019_6, CATT - UPPA - Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour, revised Feb 2019.
    5. Mian Sajid Nazir & Qaisar Hafeez & Salah U‐Din, 2022. "Did reduction in corporate tax rate attract FDI in Pakistan?," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(2), pages 2256-2267, April.
    6. repec:idq:ictduk:15661 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Ma. Laarni D. Revilla, 2016. "Cross-country Econometric Study on the Impact of Fiscal Incentives on FDI," Working Papers id:11472, eSocialSciences.
    8. Elisa Giuliani & Chiara Macchi, 2014. "Multinational corporations’ economic and human rights impacts on developing countries: a review and research agenda," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 38(2), pages 479-517.
    9. Fred Eka, 2019. "IDE chinois et croissance économique des pays d'Afrique sub-saharienne : approche par la MMG en données de panel," Working papers of CATT hal-02141049, HAL.
    10. Beata SLUSARCZYK, 2018. "Tax Incentives As A Main Factor To Attract Foreign Direct Investments In Poland," REVISTA ADMINISTRATIE SI MANAGEMENT PUBLIC, Faculty of Administration and Public Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 2018(30), pages 67-81, June.
    11. Ivar Kolstad & Arne Wiig & Odd‐Helge Fjeldstad, 2021. "Citizens’ preferences for taxation of internationally mobile corporations: Evidence from Tanzania," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(2), pages 548-562, May.
    12. Revilla, Ma. Laarni D., 2016. "Cross-Country Econometric Study on the Impact of Fiscal Incentives on Foreign Direct Investment," Discussion Papers DP 2016-17, Philippine Institute for Development Studies.
    13. He, Qichun & Sun, Meng, 2014. "Does fiscal decentralization promote the inflow of FDI in China?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 361-371.
    14. Theodore Kahn & Zack Zimbalist, 2022. "Public investment versus government consumption: how FDI shocks shape the composition of subnational spending in Mexico," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(2), pages 502-537, March.
    15. Jorge Martinez-Vazquez & Timothy Goodspeed & Li Zhang, 2011. "Do Companies View Bribes as a Tax? Evidence on the Trade-off between Corporate Taxes and Corruption in the Location of FDI," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1101, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    16. Popovici Oana Cristina, 2012. "Is Taxation Affecting The Attractiveness Of Central And Eastern Europe Countries For Fdi?," Annals - Economy Series, Constantin Brancusi University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 1, pages 141-145, March.
    17. Revilla, Ma. Laarni D., 2016. "Cross-Country Econometric Study on the Impact of Fiscal Incentives on Foreign Direct Investment," Research Paper Series DP 2016-17, Philippine Institute for Development Studies.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Thierry Madiès & Sonia Paty & Yvon Rocaboy, 2005. "Externalités fiscales horizontales et verticales. Où en est la théorie du fédéralisme financier ?," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 115(1), pages 17-63.
    2. Joel HELLIER, 2021. "Globalization and Inequality in Advanced Economies: A Provisional Assessment," Working Papers 575, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    3. Zodrow, George R, 2003. "Tax Competition and Tax Coordination in the European Union," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 10(6), pages 651-671, November.
    4. Azémar, Céline & Desbordes, Rodolphe & Wooton, Ian, 2020. "Is international tax competition only about taxes? A market-based perspective," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 891-912.
    5. Wilson, John Douglas & Wildasin, David E., 2004. "Capital tax competition: bane or boon," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(6), pages 1065-1091, June.
    6. Maria Elkhdari (a), Samira Oukarfi (b), Samir Zine El Alaoui (b) and Youness Sahibi (c), 2021. "Are Strategic Interactions between Moroccan Local Governments Geographical or Political?," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 46(1), pages 33-52, March.
    7. Zissimos, Ben & Wooders, Myrna, 2008. "Public good differentiation and the intensity of tax competition," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(5-6), pages 1105-1121, June.
    8. Caldeira, Emilie, 2012. "Yardstick competition in a federation: Theory and evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 878-897.
    9. Keuschnigg, Christian & Loretz, Simon & Winner, Hannes, 2014. "Tax Competition and Tax Coordination in the European Union: A Survey," Working Papers in Economics 2014-4, University of Salzburg.
    10. Andre Fourcans & Thierry Warin, 2010. "Tax competition and information sharing in Europe: a signalling game," International Journal of Economics and Business Research, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 2(1/2), pages 76-86.
    11. Fredrik Andersson & Rikard Forslid, 2003. "Tax Competition and Economic Geography," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 5(2), pages 279-303, April.
    12. Ernesto Crivelli & Ruud De Mooij & Michael Keen, 2016. "Base Erosion, Profit Shifting and Developing Countries," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 72(3), pages 268-301, September.
    13. Baskaran, Thushyanthan & Lopes da Fonseca, Mariana, 2013. "The economics and empirics of tax competition: A survey," University of Göttingen Working Papers in Economics 163, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
    14. Nelly Exbrayat, 2008. "The Impact of Trade Integration and Agglomeration Economies on Tax Interactions : Evidence from OECD Countries," Post-Print hal-00270067, HAL.
    15. C. Dembour, 2008. "Competition for Business Location: A Survey," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 89-111, June.
    16. Alfaro, Laura & Charlton, Andrew, 2007. "Growth and the quality of foreign direct investment: is all FDI equal?," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 19666, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    17. Dreher, Axel, 2006. "The influence of globalization on taxes and social policy: An empirical analysis for OECD countries," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 179-201, March.
    18. Krishanu Karmakar & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2014. "Fiscal Competition versus Fiscal Harmonization: A Review of the Arguments," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1431, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    19. Steve Billon, 2023. "Tax Competition and Leviathan with Decentralized Leadership," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 79(2), pages 93-110.
    20. Keith Blackburn & Gareth Downing, 2015. "Deconcentration, Corruption and Economic Growth," Centre for Growth and Business Cycle Research Discussion Paper Series 209, Economics, The University of Manchester.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Subnational Economic Development; Debt Markets; Taxation&Subsidies; Emerging Markets; Public Sector Economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:5311. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Roula I. Yazigi (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/dvewbus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.