U.S. proposal to unblock global tax talks 'interesting' -France
Reuters
Published Apr 08, 2021 11:57AM ET
Updated Apr 08, 2021 01:01PM ET
PARIS (Reuters) -A new U.S. proposal to unblock international negotiations on how to tax big multinationals is an "interesting" starting point, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Thursday.
He said his U.S. counterpart Janet Yellen had suggested this week that a broader range of companies should be covered by new rules for taxing multinationals which are being negotiated at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
"If we can be assured that the American proposal covers all of the digital giants without exception, it appears to us to be an interesting point of departure," Le Maire told journalists.
Frustrated like many governments that big digital giants like Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) can legally book profits in low-tax countries like Ireland, France in 2019 imposed a digital service tax that it has promised to drop once there is an OECD deal in place.
However, France remains subject to a threat of U.S. tariff retaliation which the previous administration of Donald Trump put in place, judging that the French tax unfairly discriminates against U.S. companies.
Le Maire also said that he was open to considering a higher global minimum corporate tax rate than what had been under consideration so far in the OECD talks.
A rate of 12.5% had been under discussion so far in the negotiations until Washington proposed a rate of 21% this week.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.