Publications

Services Policy Reform and Manufacturing Employment: Evidence from Transition Economies

, and | 13 September 2017
Trade, Working Papers | Tags: Employment, Services Trade
Policy reforms targeting the services sectors are a neglected dimension of the process of structural transformation and economic development. The effects of such reforms on employment across industries as a function of their use of services as intermediate inputs are theoretically ambiguous and remain largely ... continue reading

Is It Time To Take Away The Carbon Punch Bowl?

| 5 September 2017
Monetary, Blog | Tags: Climate Change, Financial Stability, Macroprudential Policy
Climate change poses serious financial risks. Perhaps the biggest systemic risk is a disorderly transition to a low carbon economy. As noted in the Bank of England’s ‘response to Climate Change’, current forecasts suggest that to keep global average temperatures below 2 degrees, around two-thirds of ... continue reading

Fiscal Policy and Informality

| 1 September 2017
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Inequality, Pensions, Tax Expenditures
Countries differ from each other in several aspects that need to be considered when designing fiscal policy. The size of the informal sector is a case in point. ... continue reading

Unpacking Patent Boxes

| 26 July 2017
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Patent Boxes, Tax Competition, Tax Expenditures
An intellectual property box is a special lower tax rate for profits associated with intellectual property (IP). There are over twenty around the world, and over the last few years bills have been introduced to the U.S. Congress for a U.S. IP box. IP boxes always ... continue reading

Tax Expenditures. The Big Black Box

| 20 July 2017
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Tax Expenditures
According to the federal financial statements 2016, tax expenditures in Switzerland reduced government revenues by 21 to 25 billion Swiss francs. This amounts to 31 to 37 percent of the country’s federal income. ... continue reading