The United States imposes and then suspends new tariffs to allow time for the international tax treaty

And the United States imposed, on Wednesday, an increase in tariffs on imported goods from six countries. However, they have continued to hold off the implementation of higher tariffs in order to allow more time for a comprehensive deal on taxes for tech giants as part of the ongoing discussion in the OECD and the G20.

Yesterday, the US Department of Commerce imposed a 25% tariff on products imported from India, Turkey, the UK, Italy, Spain and Austria in response to these six countries’ implementation of taxes on US tech giants such as Google and Facebook. And Amazon. And Bloomberg wrote in 2019 that the products targeted by this tariff escalation amounted to $2 billion, explaining that they range from Italian shoes to Turkish rugs, including seafood or cosmetics imports.

However, soon after, it was stated that the application of these increased tariffs would be delayed by up to 180 days to allow more time to negotiate an international agreement on creating a minimum tax that would prevent multinational corporations from not paying taxes on profits in a particular country, given Being located in low-tax countries, it has been negotiated at the level of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Group of Twenty. “The United States is focused on seeking a multilateral solution to a number of key issues related to international taxation, including our concerns about taxing digital services,” US Representative Catherine Taye said in US newspapers.

Catherine Taye explained that the administration’s decision, led by President Joe Biden, aims to “provide time for negotiations.” [na OCDE e G20] Keep making progress,” while keeping the debate on the table about the possibility of Washington responding to actions of other countries seen as asymmetric practices at the trade level.

Remember that after taking office as President of the United States, Democrat Joe Biden began a series of setbacks regarding the policies pursued by his predecessor, Donald Trump, in both domestic and international affairs. However, despite indicating his intention to follow the path of multilateral negotiations to end trade disputes, Biden warned that the United States would not fail to look after its commercial interests.

So, last March, the US Commerce Department proposed harsh new tariffs on those six countries with a combined value of $880 million.

The global minimum corporate income tax rate is gaining traction
This US action is another sign of the pressure to reach an agreement at the international level providing for the adoption of a lower rate for multinational companies.

Earlier this week, Reuters reported on a working paper from the finance ministers of the world’s seven richest economies, which indicated an expectation that it would be possible for the Group of Seven industrialized nations to reach an “ambitious” agreement on a global minimum tax. regarding corporate profits at the shareholders’ meeting on Friday and Saturday 4 and 5 June.

For his part, the European Commissioner for the Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, said that he believed, at the end of the last Eurogroup, that it would be “possible to reach an agreement in principle at the level of the G-20” already on schedule. Meeting. July 9 in Venice.

To fund the ambitious economic and social plans already approved, Joe Biden decided to raise taxes on corporations and the richest (capital gains). As part of that process, Janet Yellen, Biden’s handpicked Treasury chief, proposed in April a global minimum corporate income tax of 21%, a proposal that has since evolved into a tax of at least 15%.