IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/pubeco/v173y2019icp96-112.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Profit shifting and investment effects: The implications of zero-taxable profits

Author

Listed:
  • Koethenbuerger, Marko
  • Mardan, Mohammed
  • Stimmelmayr, Michael

Abstract

Recent empirical research documents a tendency of multinational enterprise affiliates to bunch around zero reported profit. We set up a theoretical model of multinational firm behavior in which we allow for corner solutions in the choice of the optimal transfer price due to insufficient profits or losses of affiliates. Such constraints in the choice of the transfer price induce bunching and generate investment effects in the low-tax as well as the high-tax country. In equilibrium, affiliates might overinvest and the investment effects generate a tendency for too high profit taxes. The analysis provides a micro-foundation for the investment effects that result from transfer pricing. The finding stands in contrast to the existing literature where transfer pricing choices are unconstrained.

Suggested Citation

  • Koethenbuerger, Marko & Mardan, Mohammed & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2019. "Profit shifting and investment effects: The implications of zero-taxable profits," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 96-112.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:173:y:2019:i:c:p:96-112
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2019.01.007
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S004727271930009X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jpubeco.2019.01.007?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Steffen Juranek & Dirk Schindler & Guttorm Schjelderup, 2018. "Transfer pricing regulation and taxation of royalty payments," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 20(1), pages 67-84, February.
    2. Haufler, Andreas & Schjelderup, Guttorm, 2000. "Corporate Tax Systems and Cross Country Profit Shifting," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 52(2), pages 306-325, April.
    3. Keen, Michael & Konrad, Kai A., . "The theory of international tax competition and coordination," Chapters in Economics,, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    4. Huizinga, Harry & Nielsen, Soren Bo, 1997. "Capital income and profit taxation with foreign ownership of firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(1-2), pages 149-165, February.
    5. Arnt Ove Hopland & Petro Lisowsky & Mohammed Mardan & Dirk Schindler, 2014. "Income Shifting under Losses," CESifo Working Paper Series 5130, CESifo.
    6. Mardan, Mohammed & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2018. "Tax revenue losses through cross-border loss offset: An insurmountable hurdle for formula apportionment?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 188-210.
    7. Cooper, Michael & Knittel, Matthew, 2006. "Partial Loss Refundability: How Are Corporate Tax Losses Used?," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 59(3), pages 651-663, September.
    8. Niels Johannesen & Thomas Tørsløv & Ludvig Wier, 0. "Are Less Developed Countries More Exposed to Multinational Tax Avoidance? Method and Evidence from Micro-Data," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank Group, vol. 34(3), pages 790-809.
    9. Overesch, Michael, 2009. "The Effects of Multinationals’ Profit Shifting Activities on Real Investments," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 62(1), pages 5-23, March.
    10. Rosanne Altshuler & Alan J. Auerbach & Michael Cooper & Matthew Knittel, 2009. "Understanding US Corporate Tax Losses," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 23, pages 73-122, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Dhammika Dharmapala, 2014. "What Do We Know about Base Erosion and Profit Shifting? A Review of the Empirical Literature," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 35, pages 421-448, December.
    12. Alan J. Auerbach & James M. Poterba, 1987. "Tax-Loss Carryforwards and Corporate Tax Incentives," NBER Chapters, in: Taxes and Capital Formation, pages 89-92, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Nielsen, Søren Bo & Schindler, Dirk & Schjelderup, Guttorm, 2014. "Abusive Transfer Pricing and Economic Activity," Discussion Papers 2014/21, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Business and Management Science.
    14. Gordon, Roger H & Wilson, John Douglas, 1986. "An Examination of Multijurisdictional Corporate Income Taxation under Formula Apportionment," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(6), pages 1357-1373, November.
    15. Goodspeed, T-J & White, A-D, 1996. "International taxation," Papers 96-11, Wellesley College - Department of Economics.
    16. Koethenbuerger, Marko & Mardan, Mohammed & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2019. "Profit shifting and investment effects: The implications of zero-taxable profits," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 96-112.
    17. Thomas A. Gresik, 2001. "The Taxing Task of Taxing Transnationals," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 39(3), pages 800-838, September.
    18. Mihir A. Desai & C. Fritz Foley & James R. Hines Jr., 2005. "Foreign Direct Investment and Domestic Economic Activity," NBER Working Papers 11717, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    19. Kalamov, Zarko Y. & Runkel, Marco, 2016. "On the implications of introducing cross-border loss-offset in the European Union," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 78-89.
    20. Mihir A. Desai & C. Fritz Foley & James R. Hines, 2009. "Domestic Effects of the Foreign Activities of US Multinationals," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 181-203, February.
    21. Giovannini, Alberto & Hubbard, R. Glenn & Slemrod, Joel (ed.), 1993. "Studies in International Taxation," National Bureau of Economic Research Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226297019, December.
    22. Harry Grubert & Timothy Goodspeed & Deborah L. Swenson, 1993. "Explaining the Low Taxable Income of Foreign-Controlled Companies in the United States," NBER Chapters, in: Studies in International Taxation, pages 237-276, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    23. Mihir A. Desai & C. Fritz Foley & James R. Hines Jr., 2005. "Foreign Direct Investment and the Domestic Capital Stock," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(2), pages 33-38, May.
    24. Riedel, Nadine & Runkel, Marco, 2007. "Company tax reform with a water's edge," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(7-8), pages 1533-1554, August.
    25. Mintz, Jack & Smart, Michael, 2004. "Income shifting, investment, and tax competition: theory and evidence from provincial taxation in Canada," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(6), pages 1149-1168, June.
    26. Klassen, K & Lang, M & Wolfson, M, 1993. "Geographic Income Shifting By Multinational-Corporations In Response To Tax Rate Changes," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31, pages 141-173.
    27. Edgerton, Jesse, 2010. "Investment incentives and corporate tax asymmetries," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(11-12), pages 936-952, December.
    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. Petr Procházka, 2020. "Jurisdictions with lowest effective tax rates in the post-BEPS landscape - CbCR evidence and implications," European Financial and Accounting Journal, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2020(1), pages 33-52.
    2. Sharma, Rishi R. & Slemrod, Joel & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2023. "Tax losses and ex-ante offshore transfer of intellectual property," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    3. Koethenbuerger, Marko & Mardan, Mohammed & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2019. "Profit shifting and investment effects: The implications of zero-taxable profits," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 96-112.
    4. Johannesen, Niels, 2022. "The global minimum tax," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    5. S. Juranek & D. Schindler & A. Schneider, 2023. "Royalty taxation under tax competition and profit shifting," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 56(4), pages 1377-1412, November.
    6. Jozef Konings & Catherine Lecocq & Bruno Merlevede, 2022. "Does a tax deduction scheme matter for jobs and investment by multinational and domestic enterprises?," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 55(4), pages 1966-1989, November.
    7. Kai Chang & Ning Lu & Ze Sheng Li & Yi Ran Wang, 2021. "The combined impacts of fiscal and credit policies on green firm's investment opportunity: Evidences from Chinese firm‐level analysis," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 42(7), pages 1822-1835, October.
    8. Katarzyna Bilicka & André Seidel, 2020. "Profit shifting and corruption," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 27(5), pages 1051-1080, October.
    9. Katarzyna Bilicka & Michael Devereux & Irem Güçeri, 2023. "Tax-Avoidance Networks and the Push for a “Historic” Global Tax Reform," Tax Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(1), pages 57-108.
    10. Dominika Langenmayr & Li Liu, 2020. "Where Does Multinational Profit Go with Territorial Taxation? Evidence from the UK," CESifo Working Paper Series 8047, CESifo.
    11. Diller, Markus & Lorenz, Johannes & Schneider, Georg & Sureth, Caren, 2021. "Is consistency the panacea? Inconsistent or consistent tax transfer prices with strategic taxpayer and tax authority behavior," arqus Discussion Papers in Quantitative Tax Research 264, arqus - Arbeitskreis Quantitative Steuerlehre.
    12. Langenmayr, Dominika & Liu, Li, 2023. "Home or away? Profit shifting with territorial taxation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    13. Arnt Ove Hopland & Petro Lisowsky & Mohammed Mardan & Dirk Schindler, 2021. "Inflexibility in Income Shifting: Implications, Detection and Remedies," CESifo Working Paper Series 9384, CESifo.

    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. Koethenbuerger, Marko & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2016. "Taxing multinationals in the presence of internal capital markets," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 58-71.
    2. Sharma, Rishi R. & Slemrod, Joel & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2023. "Tax losses and ex-ante offshore transfer of intellectual property," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    3. Arnt Ove Hopland & Petro Lisowsky & Mohammed Mardan & Dirk Schindler, 2021. "Inflexibility in Income Shifting: Implications, Detection and Remedies," CESifo Working Paper Series 9384, CESifo.
    4. Peter Egger & Michael Stimmelmayr, 2017. "Taxation and the Multinational Firm," CESifo Working Paper Series 6384, CESifo.
    5. Arnt Ove Hopland & Petro Lisowsky & Mohammed Mardan & Dirk Schindler, 2014. "Income Shifting under Losses," CESifo Working Paper Series 5130, CESifo.
    6. Peter Egger & Marko Koethenbuerger, 2016. "Hosting multinationals: Economic and fiscal implications," Aussenwirtschaft, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science, Swiss Institute for International Economics and Applied Economics Research, vol. 67(01), pages 45-69, February.
    7. Egger, Peter & Eggert, Wolfgang & Winner, Hannes, 2010. "Saving taxes through foreign plant ownership," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 99-108, May.
    8. Hayato Kato & Hirofumi Okoshi, 2022. "Economic Integration And Agglomeration Of Multinational Production With Transfer Pricing," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 63(3), pages 1325-1355, August.
    9. Raymond Mataloni & Kim Ruhl & Dylan Rassier & Fatih Guvenen, 2016. "Offshore Profit Shifting and Domestic Productivity Measurement," 2016 Meeting Papers 1382, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    10. Bakke, Julia Tropina & Hopland, Arnt Ove & Møen, Jarle, 2019. "Profit shifting and the effect of stricter transfer pricing regulation on tax revenue," Discussion Papers 2019/11, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Business and Management Science.
    11. Mardan, Mohammed & Stimmelmayr, Michael, 2018. "Tax revenue losses through cross-border loss offset: An insurmountable hurdle for formula apportionment?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 188-210.
    12. Goldbach, Stefan & Nagengast, Arne J. & Steinmüller, Elias & Wamser, Georg, 2019. "The effect of investing abroad on investment at home: On the role of technology, tax savings, and internal capital markets," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 58-73.
    13. Gordon, Roger H. & Hines, James Jr, 2002. "International taxation," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 28, pages 1935-1995, Elsevier.
    14. S. Juranek & D. Schindler & A. Schneider, 2023. "Royalty taxation under tax competition and profit shifting," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 56(4), pages 1377-1412, November.
    15. Clemens Fuest & Bernd Huber & Jack Mintz, 2003. "Capital Mobility and Tax Competition: A Survey," CESifo Working Paper Series 956, CESifo.
    16. Sara L. McGaughey & Pascalis Raimondos, 2019. "Shifting MNE taxation from national to global profits: A radical reform long overdue," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(9), pages 1668-1683, December.
    17. Huizinga, Harry & Nicodeme, Gaetan, 2006. "Foreign ownership and corporate income taxation: An empirical evaluation," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(5), pages 1223-1244, July.
    18. Nadine Riedel, 2011. "Taxing multi-nationals under union wage bargaining," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 18(4), pages 399-421, August.
    19. Johannesen, Niels, 2022. "The global minimum tax," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    20. Regina Ortmann & Erich Pummerer, 2023. "Distortional effects of separate accounting and formula apportionment on factor allocation," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 93(8), pages 1277-1307, October.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Tax competition; Profit shifting; Corporate losses; Transfer price; Bunching; Investment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
    • D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Theory
    • H87 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - International Fiscal Issues; International Public Goods

    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:eee:pubeco:v:173:y:2019:i:c:p:96-112. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505578 .

    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.