Technology Capital and the US Current Account

被引:91
作者
McGrattan, Ellen R. [1 ,2 ]
Prescott, Edward C. [3 ]
机构
[1] Fed Reserve Bank Minneapolis, Res Dept, Minneapolis, MN 55480 USA
[2] Univ Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455 USA
[3] Arizona State Univ, Dept Econ, Tempe, AZ 85287 USA
关键词
GLOBAL IMBALANCES; RETURNS; RATES;
D O I
10.1257/aer.100.4.1493
中图分类号
F [经济];
学科分类号
02 ;
摘要
The US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) estimates that the return on investments of foreign subsidiaries of US multinational companies over the period 1982-2006 averaged 9.4 percent annually after taxes; US subsidiaries of foreign multinationals averaged only 3.2 percent. BEA returns on foreign direct investment (FDI) are distorted because most intangible investments made by multinationals are expensed. We develop a multicountry general equilibrium model with an essential role for FDI and apply the BEA's methodology to construct economic statistics for the model economy. We estimate that mismeasurement of intangible investments accounts for over 60 percent of the difference in BEA returns. (JEL F23, F32)
引用
收藏
页码:1493 / 1522
页数:30
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