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Strategic Environmental Policy and the Mobility of Firms

Author

Listed:
  • Philipp M. Richter
  • Marco Runkel
  • Robert C. Schmidt

Abstract

The loss of international competitiveness of domestic industries remains a key obstacle to the implementation of effective carbon prices in a world without harmonized climate policies. We analyze countries’ noncooperative choices of emissions taxes under imperfect competition and mobile polluting firms. In our general equilibrium setup with trade, wage effects prevent all firms from locating in the same country. While under local or no pollution countries achieve the first-best, under transboundary pollution taxes are inefficiently low and lower than under autarky where only the “standard” free-riding incentive distorts emissions taxes. This effect is more pronounced when polluting firms are mobile.

Suggested Citation

  • Philipp M. Richter & Marco Runkel & Robert C. Schmidt, 2021. "Strategic Environmental Policy and the Mobility of Firms," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 8(5), pages 863-893.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jaerec:doi:10.1086/713562
    DOI: 10.1086/713562
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    Cited by:

    1. Laura Birg & Jan S. Voßwinkel, 2021. "Emission taxes, firm relocation, and product differentiation," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 51(2), pages 297-345, April.
    2. Eichner, Thomas & Runkel, Marco, 2025. "Morality-induced leakage and decentralized environmental policy," VfS Annual Conference 2025 (Cologne): Revival of Industrial Policy 325421, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    3. Haitao Cheng, 2023. "Consumption pollution and taxes with endogenous firm locations and different market sizes," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 30(6), pages 1601-1632, December.
    4. Markus Dertwinkel-Kalt & Anna Ressi & Christian Wey, 2025. "Why Avoiding Deindustrialization via Subsidies May Trigger a Subsidy Trap and Slow Down Green Investments," CESifo Working Paper Series 12012, CESifo.
    5. Cheng, Haitao, 2024. "Domestic versus international emissions trading with capital mobility," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    6. Michael S. Michael & Panos Hatzipanayotou & Nikos Tsakiris, 2025. "Can Small Economies Act Strategically? The Case of Consumption Pollution and Non‐Tradable Goods," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 1164-1177, November.
    7. You, Chen & Cifuentes-Faura, Javier & Liu, Xiaoqian & Wu, Jinqun, 2024. "Can the government environmental vertical reform reduce air pollution? A quasi-natural experiment in China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 947-963.
    8. Fabio Antoniou & Panos Hatzipanayotou & Nikos Tsakiris, 2021. "Strategic Export Motives and Linking Emission Markets," CESifo Working Paper Series 8847, CESifo.
    9. Noha Elboghdadly & Michael Finus, 2020. "Non-Cooperative Climate Policies among Asymmetric Countries: Production- versus Consumption-based Carbon Taxes," Graz Economics Papers 2020-16, University of Graz, Department of Economics.
    10. Thomas Eichner & Marco Runkel, 2025. "Morality-Induced Leakage and Decentralized Environmental Policy," CESifo Working Paper Series 11698, CESifo.
    11. Andres, Pia, 2024. "Industrial policy and global public goods provision: rethinking the environmental trade agreement," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117899, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    12. Nikos Tsakiris & Panos Hatzipanayotou & Michael S. Michael, 2022. "Tradable Emission Permits and Strategic Capital Taxation," University of Cyprus Working Papers in Economics 01-2022, University of Cyprus Department of Economics.
    13. Nikos Tsakiris & Panos Hatzipanayotou & Michael S. Michael, 2024. "Strategic capital taxation, tradable emission permits and global pollution," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 57(1), pages 276-296, February.
    14. repec:ehl:lserod:117900 is not listed on IDEAS

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies; Fragmentation
    • F18 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Environment
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies

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