France aims for US digital tax deal by late August: minister
France wants to reach a deal with the US on taxing tech giants by a G7 meeting in late August, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said Saturday.
He was responding to US President Donald Trump, who on Friday vowed “substantial” retaliation against France for a law passed this month on taxing digital companies even if their headquarters are elsewhere.
The law would affect US-based global giants like Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon, among others.
Trump denounced French President Emmanuel Macron’s “foolishness”, though they discussed the issue by phone on Friday, according to the White House.
Macron confirmed that he had a “long” conversation with Trump, stressing the pair would “continue to work together in view of the G7”.
“We will discuss international taxation, trade and collective security”, he said Saturday.
His office earlier said Macron had told Trump that the tax on the tech giants was not just in France’s interest but was something they both had a stake in.
Neither side revealed if they had also discussed Trump’s threat to tax French wines in retaliation.
Le Maire took the same line at a news conference Saturday: “We wish to work closely with our American friends on a universal tax on digital activities.
“We hope between now and the end of August -- the G7 heads of state meeting in Biarritz -- to reach an agreement.”
Leaders of the Group of Seven highly industrialised countries are to meet in the southwestern French city on August 24-26.
Le Maire emphasised that “there is no desire to specifically target American companies,” since the three-percent tax would be levied on revenues generated from services to French consumers by all of the world’s largest tech firms, including Chinese and European ones.
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