Public Subsidies to Business: An International Comparison

The paper compares the design and outcome of public subsidies to business across a number of industrialized countries. The comparison of the amount of subsidies shows that the share of GDP devoted to total public support is markedly lower in the USA than in Europe but the share of GDP devoted to support that improves economic performance is comparable. Implementing public support follows two models. The first model (Anglo-Saxon) model is primarily "soft" in nature and decentralized. The second model is more interventionist and centralized. The former model seems to perform better especially in term of science and technology. However, the impact of public support policies remains seriously under-researched and more research is crucially needed to draw firm conclusions.