CEPII, Recherche et Expertise sur l'economie mondiale
Corporate tax avoidance and industry concentration


Julien Martin
Mathieu Parenti
Farid Toubal

 Highlights :
  • Tax avoidance by large corporations has contributed to the 25% increase in concentration among U.S. firms since the mid-1990s.
  • Corporate tax avoidance gives large firms a competitive edge, which translates into larger market shares and an increase in the granularity of the economy.
  • Develop IV and difference-in-differences strategies that show the causal impact of tax avoidance on firm-level sales.
  • Had firms not resorted to tax avoidance in 2017, our results imply that the average industry concentration would have been 8.3% lower, which is around its early 2000 level.

 Abstract :
This paper argues that tax avoidance by large corporations has contributed to the 25% increase in concentration among U.S. firms since the mid-1990s. Corporate tax avoidance gives large firms a competitive edge, which translates into larger market shares and an increase in the granularity of the economy. We develop IV and difference-in-differences strategies that show the causal impact of tax avoidance on firm-level sales. Had firms not resorted to tax avoidance in 2017, our results imply that the average industry concentration would have been 8.3% lower, which is around its early 2000 level.


 Keywords : Tax Avoidance | Industry Concentration | IRS Audit Probability

 JEL : D22, H26, L11, D4, F23
CEPII Working Paper
N°2020-09, July 2020

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