DFG research group analyzes effect of taxes on international corporations

Google or Starbucks are just two examples of large multinational companies that are pursuing an aggressive tax avoidance strategy through profit shifting and tax evasion. The KU participates in a research group on “the effects of international tax institutions on the behavior of multinational enterprises” that analyzes how such companies directly and indirectly adapt to international tax regulations. The group also investigates consequences for the real economy and possible welfare effects. The ten researchers from six German universities receive financial support from the German Research Foundation (DFG) for this project, which is led by the University of Tübingen.

In her sub-project, which is funded with approx. 200,000 euros, Prof. Dr. Dominika Langenmayr (Chair of Economics, esp. Public Finance at the KU business and economics faculty Ingolstadt School of Management) will particularly focus on the influence of taxes on company productivity. “This is an important topic, because the development of productivity strongly influences the development of the economy as a whole. For example, tax regulations can create incentives for research and development, which in turn influence business productivity”, explains Langenmayr. She went on to say that international differences in tax rates led to multinational companies relocating profits to countries with lower tax rates. This shifting of profits distorted the measurement of business productivity, which means that differences between the countries may also be explained by tax-induced measurement errors.

These aspects will now be analyzed by way of empirical studies using company and tax data. In addition, Langenmayr intends to develop a theoretical model that helps to determine the exact channels by which research and development and thus the actual productivity development of taxes is influenced.