• Big Tech.The world seeks 90,000 million in taxes from internet giants

France and the United States measure their strength. The so-called Google rate continues at the core of the conversations between the two countries, in which there is no lack of reproaches and threats. The two administrations have been granted 15 days for an international agreement to be reached for the taxation of technological giants, as announced by the French Economy Minister, Bruno Le Maire.

France and the United States have been granted two weeks for this commitment, which would be achieved within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), as indicated on Tuesday by the French Minister of Economy, Bruno Le Maire. "We have given ourselves exactly 15 days" to resolve the issue at the OECD, said the head of Finance, who had a "long" telephone conversation with Steven Mnuchin, secretary of the US Treasury. "We gave ourselves precisely 15 days until the next appointment, which is planned for the negotiations that are held in parallel to the meeting in Davos [Switzerland] at the end of January," Le Maire has advanced.

The rate applied by France serves as inspiration for what would be launched in Spain by the PSOE and United we can; The progress of the program announced by both parties included, in effect, "the Tax on certain digital services in order to tax those operations of the digital economy that are currently not taxed."

France charges with 3% the digital income that has been generated within its borders, a tax that only affects companies that invoice more than 25 million euros in that country and 750 million worldwide. Therefore, North American companies such as Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon would face this tax (the rate has been baptized internationally as GAFA).

The Donald Trump Administration reacted to the French measure, as in so many other cases, by announcing tariffs. The US has claimed that it would impose charges of up to 100% on numerous French products, some as relevant for galas exports such as wine and cheese . A report by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) had corroborated that the French rate was detrimental to US companies.

"If the Americans decide to go ahead and impose sanctions against the digital rate ... in that case we will retaliate, " Le Maire announced in France Inter radio last Monday: "If there were sanctions, and it is possible that there are, we will put ourselves in immediate contact with the World Trade Organization [WTO]. "

Trump defends the interests of these companies and has also attracted to the US the payment of their taxes with a fiscal reform, that of 2017, which invited the repatriation of the benefits obtained in the international framework, often referred to tax havens or nations with especially lax taxes.

Waiting for the OECD

Le Maire has asked Washington to not sanction Paris during the "discussion period." Both countries expect the OECD to find a formula to create a global tax for digital activities, although countries like France have already launched it unilaterally.

The tax that arises from the OECD would replace French - or Spanish -, because this is currently the international way of consensus after the European Union (EU) found it impossible to reach an agreement in this regard. France insists that, beyond its clash with the Americans, "this is a general issue between the US and Europe." In fact, Le Maire has also met in Paris with the EU commissioner of Commerce, Phil Hogan, who has made it clear that the continental bloc "will stay with France" in the trade dispute. In addition, Hogan will travel to Washington next week, where he will meet Robert Lighthizer, head of US Commerce.

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