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Competing for capital when labor is heterogeneous

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  • Sato, Yasuhiro
  • Thisse, Jacques-Francois

Abstract

This paper investigates the impacts of capital mobility and tax competition in a setting with imperfect matching between firms and workers. The small country attracts less firms than the large one but accommodates a share of the industry that exceeds its capital share -a reverse home market effect. This allows the small country to be more aggressive and to set a higher tax rate than the large one, thus implying that tax competition reduces international inequalities. However, the large country always attains a higher utility than does the small country. Our model thus encapsulates both the "importance of being small" and the "importance of being large". Last, tax harmonization benefits to the small country but is detrimental to the large one.
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(This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)

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  • Sato, Yasuhiro & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 2007. "Competing for capital when labor is heterogeneous," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(8), pages 2054-2079, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:51:y:2007:i:8:p:2054-2079
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    Cited by:

    1. Hikaru Ogawa & Yasuhiro Sato & Toshiki Tamai, 2016. "Who gains from capital market integration? Tax competition between unionized and non‐unionized countries," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 49(1), pages 76-110, February.
    2. Yasuhiro Sato & Kristian Behrens, 2006. "`Brain drain' without migration: Capital market integration and capital-skill complementarities," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 18(2), pages 1-9.
    3. William R. Kerr & Frederic Robert-Nicoud, 2020. "Tech Clusters," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 34(3), pages 50-76, Summer.
    4. Hayato Kato, 2018. "Lobbying and tax competition in an oligopolistic industry: a reverse home-market effect," Spatial Economic Analysis, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 13(3), pages 276-295, July.
    5. Kato, Hayato, 2015. "Lobbying and Tax Competition in an Agglomeration Economy: A Reverse Home Market Effect," CCES Discussion Paper Series 56, Center for Research on Contemporary Economic Systems, Graduate School of Economics, Hitotsubashi University.
    6. Krautheim, Sebastian & Schmidt-Eisenlohr, Tim, 2011. "Heterogeneous firms, 'profit shifting' FDI and international tax competition," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1-2), pages 122-133, February.
    7. Miyagiwa, Kaz & Sato, Yasuhiro, 2014. "Free entry and regulatory competition in a global economy," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 1-14.
    8. Kaz Miyagiwa & Yasuhiro Sato, 2012. "Free Entry, Regulatory Competition, and Globalization," ISER Discussion Paper 0835, Institute of Social and Economic Research, Osaka University.
    9. Rüdiger Pethig & Frieder Kolleß, 2009. "Asymmetric capital-tax competition, unemployment and losses from capital market integration," Volkswirtschaftliche Diskussionsbeiträge 137-09, Universität Siegen, Fakultät Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Wirtschaftsinformatik und Wirtschaftsrecht.
    10. Jun Oshiro, 2011. "Tariff Policy and Transport Costs under Reciprocal Dumping," Discussion Papers in Economics and Business 11-17, Osaka University, Graduate School of Economics.
    11. Yasuhiro Sato, 2009. "Capital tax competition and search unemployment," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 88(4), pages 749-764, November.
    12. Yu-Bong Lai, 2014. "Asymmetric tax competition in the presence of lobbying," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 21(1), pages 66-86, February.
    13. repec:ebl:ecbull:v:18:y:2006:i:2:p:1-9 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. OGAWA Hikaru & OSHIRO Jun & SATO Yasuhiro, 2012. "Capital Mobility—a resource curse or blessing? How, when, and for whom?," Discussion papers 12063, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements
    • H32 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Firm
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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