DIW-Steuerexperte Stefan Bach nimmt die Wahlprogramme der Parteien vor der Bundestagswahl 2025 hinsichtlich ihrer Steuerpläne unter die Lupe. Union und FDP wollen Besser- und Hochverdienende entlasten, SPD und Grüne die unteren und mittleren Einkommen. Der Wissenschaftler legt den Finger in die Wunde: Genug Wachstumseffekte sind unwahrscheinlich, Steuererhöhungen sollten nicht tabu sein. In seinen...
The advent of cloud computing promises to improve the way firms use IT solutions. Firms are expected to replace large and inflexible fixed-cost investments in IT with more targeted, variable spending on cloud solutions. This is also expected to increase firms' productivity by allowing them to quickly adapt their IT infrastructure to their specific needs. We assess this claim using firm-level data provided ...
This paper investigates the elusive role of productivity heterogeneity in new trade models in the trade and environment nexus. We contrast the Eaton-Kortum and the Melitz models with firm heterogeneity to the Armington and Krugman models without heterogeneity. We show that if firms have a constant emission share in terms of sales — as they do in a wide range of trade and environment models — the...
This paper analyzes the distribution and composition of pre-tax national income in Germany since 1992, combining personal income tax returns, household survey data, and national accounts. Inequality rose from the 1990s to the late 2000s due to falling labor incomes among the bottom 50% and rising incomes in the top 10%. This trend reversed after 2007 as labor incomes across the bottom 90% increased. ...
Diese Dissertation umfasst vier eigenständige Kapitel, die zur Literatur in der BildungsundArbeitsmarktökonomie beitragen. Sie zeigen auf, welche Determinanten zu denLohnerwartungen von Abiturienten beitragen (Kapitel 1) und wie diese Erwartungenzusammen mit Arbeitsmarktbedingungen zum Zeitpunkt des Abiturs (Kapitel2), Studiengangsrankings (Kapitel 3) und Studiengebühren (Kapitel 4) nachschulischeHumankapitalinvestitionen ...
Patience and risk-taking—two preference components that steer intertemporal decision-making—are fundamental to human capital investment decisions. To understand how they contribute to international skill differences, we combine Programme for International Student Assessment tests with the Global Preference Survey. We find that opposing effects of patience (positive) and risk-taking (negative) together ...
Understanding the causes of the slowdown in aggregate productivity growth is key to maintaining the competitiveness of advanced economies and ensuring long-term economic prosperity. This paper provides evidence that investment in intangible capital, despite having a positive effect on productivity at the micro level, is a driver of the weak productivity performance at the aggregate level as it amplifies ...