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Tax Policy Under Keeping Up with the Joneses and Imperfectly Competitive Product Markets

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  • Jang-Ting Guo

Abstract

This paper examines the optimal (first-best) fiscal policy in a stochastic representative agent model that exhibits a ``keeping up with the Joneses'' utility function and imperfectly competitive product markets. We find that the optimal labor tax is a constant, whose sign is determined by the relative strength of consumption externality and monopoly power. Moreover, the optimal capital tax is unambiguously negative and affects the economy countercyclically. Our analysis shows that models with capital accumulation, imperfect competition, and ``keeping up with the Joneses'' preferences call for traditional Keynesian demand-management policies that are designed to mitigate business cycle fluctuations

Suggested Citation

  • Jang-Ting Guo, 2004. "Tax Policy Under Keeping Up with the Joneses and Imperfectly Competitive Product Markets," Econometric Society 2004 North American Winter Meetings 17, Econometric Society.
    • Handle: RePEc:ecm:nawm04:17
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    File URL: http://repec.org/esNAWM04/up.6135.1043371283.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    7. Jaime Alonso-Carrera & Jordi Caball?Author-Email: jordi.caballe@uab.es & Xavier Raurich, 2001. "Income Taxation with Habit Formation and Consumption Externalities," UFAE and IAE Working Papers 496.01, Unitat de Fonaments de l'Anàlisi Econòmica (UAB) and Institut d'Anàlisi Econòmica (CSIC).
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    10. Gali, Jordi, 1994. "Keeping Up with the Joneses: Consumption Externalities, Portfolio Choice, and Asset Prices," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 26(1), pages 1-8, February.
    11. Correia, Isabel H., 1996. "Should capital income be taxed in the steady state?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 147-151, April.
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    13. Harald Uhlig & Lars Ljungqvist, 2000. "Tax Policy and Aggregate Demand Management under Catching Up with the Joneses," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(3), pages 356-366, June.
    14. Guo, Jang-Ting & Lansing, Kevin J., 1999. "Optimal taxation of capital income with imperfectly competitive product markets," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 23(7), pages 967-995, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Shu-Hua Chen, 2012. "On the Growth and Stability Effects of Habit Formation and Durability in Consumption," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 13(2), pages 283-298, November.
    2. Jang-Ting Guo & Juin-Jen Chang, 2008. "Social Status and Optimal Income Taxation," Working Papers 200814, University of California at Riverside, Department of Economics, revised Dec 2008.
    3. Runli Xie, 2009. "Trade-Off Between Consumption Growth and Inequality: Theory and Evidence for Germany," SFB 649 Discussion Papers SFB649DP2009-035, Sonderforschungsbereich 649, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany.
    4. Alejandro SALAZAR-ADAMS & Nicolás PINEDA-PABLOS, 2010. "Policies for Meeting Future Water Needs in Mexican Cities," EcoMod2010 259600147, EcoMod.
    5. Runli Xie, 2010. "Consumption Growth and Volatility with Consumption Externalities," SFB 649 Discussion Papers SFB649DP2010-057, Sonderforschungsbereich 649, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fiscal Policy; Keeping Up with the Joneses; Imperfect Competition;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E63 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Comparative or Joint Analysis of Fiscal and Monetary Policy; Stabilization; Treasury Policy
    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation

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