There has been surprisingly little empirical work explaining why countries choose different bundles of taxes. Early research by Musgrave and Hinrichs focused on the amorphous distinction between direct and indirect taxes. More recent research has examined the use of trade taxes and inflation,...

This paper surveys the sovereign debt literature and summarizes the political economy trade-offs of seven distinct mechanisms for achieving debt sustainability. Two mechanisms – financial aid and asset exchange – are often underemphasized or entirely overlooked even though they can play an...

Some regional trade agreements such as the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Area or the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement require through bills of lading to prove compliance with direct transport requirements (DTRs). Since such clauses do not accord with business practices in transportation, disputes have...

We analyse the economic impact of using carbon pricing revenue to fund the EU budget. Such a reform would redistribute from countries with above average carbon intensive production to less carbon intensive countries. Once the reform is implemented, the low carbon countries will prefer a lower...

Tax collection is vital to maintain fiscal sustainability. According to a World Bank report, developing economies average 15% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in tax collections which is lower than that in advanced economies i.e. 40%. This inability of the developing economies recognizes weak...

Taking Singapore as an example, this article lays out a series of tests for determining whether gains arising from the disposal of cryptocurrencies are trade or business income, “all other income” or capital gains. It also considers the possibility of a presumption that individuals engaging...

In contrast to developed countries, developing nations are especially reliant on trade taxes, particularly tariffs, as a source of government revenue. As such, tariff liberalization provides them with an incentive to switch towards other revenue generating trade barriers such as anti-dumping...

The news industry in the United States faces a funding crisis because the tech giants, particularly Google and Facebook, have acceded to the advertising monopolies once enjoyed by the newspaper industry itself. Despite the best efforts of the news industry to paint the tech giants as rapacious...

The United States is currently trying to manage a fast-moving public health crisis due to the coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19). The economic and financial ramifications of the outbreak are serious. This Working Paper discusses these ramifications and identifies three interrelated but potentially...

We analyse the economic impact of using carbon pricing revenue to fund the EU budget. Such a reform would redistribute from countries with above average carbon intensive production to less carbon intensive countries. Once the reform is implemented, the low carbon countries will prefer a lower...