Tariffs, Income Distribution and Welfare in a Small Overlapping-Generations Economy.

This paper analyzes the welfare implications of an import tariff for a small overlapping-generations economy. The study analyzes the role of income redistribution, induced by the imposition of a tariff, in the determination of the time path of welfare levels. It is shown that despite homotheticity, the (implicit) pattern of distribution of tariff revenues is an integral and prominent component in the assessment of the welfare consequences of a tariff. The analysis provides sufficient conditions under which a tariff increases short-run as well as long-run welfare despite the absence of changes in the terms of trade. Copyright 1994 by Economics Department of the University of Pennsylvania and the Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association.