This 2007 Article IV Consultation highlights that Japan’s external position remains strong. Boosted by investment income, the current account surplus widened in 2006 to nearly 4 percent of Japan’s GDP, despite a shrinking trade balance. Financial outflows also picked up, reflecting...

This paper presents an overview of recent U.S. fiscal developments and discusses possible implications of the sharp turn around in the government’s fiscal position. Against this back ground, it also reviews key policy challenges that will need to be addressed to cope with the mounting...

One of the main functions of public debt is to smooth taxes and spending over time. In the Covid crisis, the Maastricht deficit restrictions were temporarily suspended to allow for large temporary deficits. As recovery sets in, countries are confronted with the task of consolidating the Covid...

This study provides an overview of tax structures in LAC before the COVID-19 pandemic, compares it to OECD countries, and provides recommendations for growth-friendly and inclusive tax policy reforms. LAC countries collect significantly lower tax revenue relative to OECD countries and have tax...

This paper aims to assess tax policy reforms that can sustain universal basic income programs and foster long-term growth and welfare in a currency union that faces fiscal rule constraints and inequality. To address this ongoing government and economics' debate, we developed a Dynamic Stochastic...

This study examines whether U.S. effective tax rates on foreign income of U.S. multinationals (MNCs) vary according to the favorability of U.S. macroeconomic conditions relative to those of non-U.S. countries. We use the pre-Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 regime as our setting and present...

Tax expenditures are considered as a tool to channel tax revenue into various industries and to facilitate certain specific activities of the government. To a great extent the amount of revenue to be raised depends on the existence of tax bases and tax rates prevailing in the country. The...

In recent times, Africa has experienced remarkable economic growth; nonetheless, this advancement remains far from being considered inclusive, given the persistently high levels of poverty and income inequality across the continent. To this end, this study investigates the role of fiscal policy...

We investigate the relation between corporate performance and overall economic growth in the United States. In particular, we focus on the impact of the U.S. corporate tax regime on this relation. Exploiting time-series variation and a tax shock, we document that the relatively higher corporate...