An Introduction to Transfer Pricing

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of transfer pricing as an increasingly key issue in international business and trade and examines the topic from both micro (firm level) and macro (economy wide) perspectives. On a micro level, how transfer pricing decisions are made within a firm is examined via a case study, highlighting the difficulty in solving the “corporate transfer pricing problem” and the shortcomings of recent regulations in providing a framework for a solution. On a macro level, recent literature is reviewed that demonstrates the impact that transfer pricing has on the larger economy.