Gold and tax capitalization: A natural experiment

Abstract

This research examines whether U.S. income taxes are capitalized into gold coin prices. For years, the American Eagle (Eagle) was the sole gold coin to be IRA eligible. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 expanded eligibility to include all other gold coins beginning on January 1, 1998, except the South African Krugerrand (Rand). In this natural quasi-experiment, we examine whether gold coin prices reacted to the change in IRA-eligibility. Results are largely consistent with the capitalization of implicit taxes in gold coin prices. When legislation allowing IRA eligibility of both the Canadian Maple Leaf (Maple) and the Rand was introduced, the prices of both coins increased relative to the Eagle. When final legislation excluded the Rand from IRA eligibility, but not the Maple, the Rand's price declined while the Maple's did not. The findings contribute to the tax capitalization literature and the effects of interjurisdictional taxation in integrated global markets.