IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/106448.html

The International Distribution of FDI Income And Its Impact on Income Inequality

Author

Listed:
  • Joyce, Joseph

Abstract

Income generated by foreign direct investments (FDI) has grown since the 1990s, and now represents a substantial portion of many countries’ current accounts. Some of these flows are routed through Special Purpose Entities in financial centers that multinational firms use to minimize their tax liabilities. We use IMF and OECD data to ascertain which countries receive FDI-generated income, and find that a few advanced economies are the recipients of the largest shares. We also distinguish between FDI equity income and FDI interest income arising from intra-firm lending. We investigate the impact of these flows on income distribution within the recipient countries. FDI equity income contributes to the income share of the top 1% of households in advanced economies. FDI interest income, on the other hand, has no impact in these economies. FDI equity income also contributes to the income share of the top 1% in financial centers, but interest income is inversely linked to their income share. FDI income, therefore, increases inequality both among and within countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Joyce, Joseph, 2021. "The International Distribution of FDI Income And Its Impact on Income Inequality," MPRA Paper 106448, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:106448
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/106448/1/MPRA_paper_106448.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Davide Furceri & Prakash Loungani & Jonathan D. Ostry, 2019. "The Aggregate and Distributional Effects of Financial Globalization: Evidence from Macro and Sectoral Data," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 51(S1), pages 163-198, December.
    2. Robert C. Feenstra & Robert Inklaar & Marcel P. Timmer, 2015. "The Next Generation of the Penn World Table," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(10), pages 3150-3182, October.
    3. Thomas Piketty & Gabriel Zucman, 2014. "Capital is Back: Wealth-Income Ratios in Rich Countries 1700–2010," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(3), pages 1255-1310.
    4. Philipp Heimberger, 2020. "Does economic globalisation affect income inequality? A meta‐analysis," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(11), pages 2960-2982, November.
    5. Brei, Michael & Ferri, Giovanni & Gambacorta, Leonardo, 2023. "Financial structure and income inequality," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    6. Chinn, Menzie D. & Ito, Hiro, 2006. "What matters for financial development? Capital controls, institutions, and interactions," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 163-192, October.
    7. Kristin Forbes & Ida Hjortsoe & Tsvetelina Nenova, 2017. "Current Account Deficits During Heightened Risk: Menacing or Mitigating?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 0(601), pages 571-623, May.
    8. Clausing, Kimberly A., 2009. "Multinational Firm Tax Avoidance and Tax Policy," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 62(4), pages 703-725, December.
    9. Jennifer Bruner & Dylan G. Rassier & Kim J. Ruhl, 2018. "Multinational Profit Shifting and Measures throughout Economic Accounts," NBER Chapters, in: Challenges of Globalization in the Measurement of National Accounts, pages 153-205, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Zsolt Darvas & Pia Hüttl, 2017. "Returns on foreign assets and liabilities- exorbitant privileges and stabilising adjustments," Bruegel Working Papers 22975, Bruegel.
    11. Damgaard, Jannick & Elkjaer, Thomas & Johannesen, Niels, 2024. "What is real and what is not in the global FDI network?," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    12. repec:hal:pseose:halshs-01109372 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Hünnekes, Franziska & Konradt, Maximilian & Schularick, Moritz & Trebesch, Christoph & Wingenbach, Julian, 2025. "Exportweltmeister: Germany’s foreign investment returns in international comparison," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    14. Huizinga, Harry & Laeven, Luc, 2008. "International profit shifting within multinationals: A multi-country perspective," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(5-6), pages 1164-1182, June.
    15. Thomas A. Knetsch & Arne J. Nagengast, 2017. "Penny wise and pound foolish? On the income from Germany’s foreign investments," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 153(4), pages 753-778, November.
    16. Gopinath, G. & Helpman, . & Rogoff, K. (ed.), 2014. "Handbook of International Economics," Handbook of International Economics, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 4, number 4.
    17. Kristin Forbes & Ida Hjortsoe & Tsvetelina Nenova, 2017. "Current Account Deficits During Heightened Risk: Menacing or Mitigating?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 0(601), pages 571-623, May.
    18. Habib, Maurizio Michael, 2010. "Excess returns on net foreign assets: the exorbitant privilege from a global perspective," Working Paper Series 1158, European Central Bank.
    19. Alberola, Enrique & Estrada, Ángel & Viani, Francesca, 2020. "Global imbalances from a stock perspective: The asymmetry between creditors and debtors," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    20. Teresia Kaulihowa & Charles Adjasi, 2018. "FDI and income inequality in Africa," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(2), pages 250-265, April.
    21. Bumann, Silke & Lensink, Robert, 2016. "Capital account liberalization and income inequality," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 143-162.
    22. Schularick, Moritz & Hünnekes, Franziska & Trebesch, Christoph, 2019. "Exportweltmeister: The Low Returns on Germany’s Capital Exports," CEPR Discussion Papers 13863, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    23. Hauner, Thomas & Milanovic, Branko & Naidu, Suresh, 2017. "Inequality, Foreign Investment, and Imperialism," MPRA Paper 83068, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    24. James R. Hines & Eric M. Rice, 1994. "Fiscal Paradise: Foreign Tax Havens and American Business," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(1), pages 149-182.
    25. Kimberly A. Clausing, 2016. "The Effect of Profit Shifting on the Corporate Tax Base in the United States and Beyond," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 69(4), pages 905-934, December.
    26. Sebastian Beer & Ruud de Mooij & Li Liu, 2020. "International Corporate Tax Avoidance: A Review Of The Channels, Magnitudes, And Blind Spots," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(3), pages 660-688, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Joyce, Joseph, 2022. "The Impact of FDI Income on Income Inequality in Home Countries," MPRA Paper 114564, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Joseph P. Joyce, 2024. "The impact of FDI income on income shares in home countries," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 22(2), pages 265-284, June.
    3. Vincent Vicard, 2023. "Correction: Profit Shifting, Returns on Foreign Direct Investments and Investment Income Imbalances," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 71(2), pages 574-575, June.
    4. Vincent Vicard, 2019. "The Exorbitant Privilege of High Tax Countries," Working Papers 2019-06, CEPII research center.
    5. Joseph P. Joyce, 2021. "The sources of international investment income in emerging market economies," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 606-625, August.
    6. Fuest, Clemens & Hugger, Felix & Neumeier, Florian, 2022. "Corporate profit shifting and the role of tax havens: Evidence from German country-by-country reporting data," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 454-477.
    7. Garcia-Bernardo, Javier & Janský, Petr, 2024. "Profit shifting of multinational corporations worldwide," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    8. Nadia Accoto & Stefano Federico & Giacomo Oddo, 2024. "Trade in services related to intangibles and the profit shifting hypothesis," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 70(4), pages 1037-1059, December.
    9. Petr Janský & Miroslav Palanský, 2019. "Estimating the scale of profit shifting and tax revenue losses related to foreign direct investment," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 26(5), pages 1048-1103, October.
    10. Müller, Raphael & Spengel, Christoph & Vay, Heiko, 2020. "On the determinants and effects of corporate tax transparency: Review of an emerging literature," ZEW Discussion Papers 20-063, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    11. Arrigoni, Simone, 2024. "Who gets the flow? Financial globalisation and wealth inequality," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    12. Ludvig Wier & Hayley Erasmus, 2023. "The Dominant Role of Large Firms in Profit Shifting," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 71(3), pages 791-816, September.
    13. Brun Lidia & Speitmann Raffael & Stasio Andrzej Leszek & Stoehlker Daniel, 2025. "The Corporate Income Tax Gap," JRC Working Papers on Taxation & Structural Reforms 2025-07, Joint Research Centre.
    14. Marika Viertola, 2023. "Profit Shifting of Multinational Enterprises: Evidence from the Nordics," Working Papers 18, Finnish Centre of Excellence in Tax Systems Research.
    15. Delis, Fotis & Delis, Manthos D. & Laeven, Luc & Ongena, Steven, 2025. "Global evidence on profit shifting within firms and across time," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(2).
    16. Ludvig Wier & Hayley Reynolds, 2018. "Big and 'unprofitable': How 10 per cent of multinational firms do 98 per cent of profit shifting," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2018-111, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. De Vito, Antonio & Hillmann, Lisa & Jacob, Martin & Vossebürger, Robert, 2025. "Do personal income taxes affect corporate tax-motivated profit shifting?," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(2).
    18. Thomas Tørsløv & Ludvig Wier & Gabriel Zucman, 2023. "The Missing Profits of Nations," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 90(3), pages 1499-1534.
    19. Lejour, Arjan, 2023. "The rise of tax havens and conduit countries from the early 2000s," Other publications TiSEM fe0b39a6-1216-4449-862f-b, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    20. Federico Sallusti, 2025. "Measuring Profit Shifting Using “Resident” Information: The PSM-ROC Method," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 73(1), pages 267-315, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements
    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business

    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:pra:mprapa:106448. 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: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.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.