U.S. vows 100 per cent tariffs on France’s champagne, cheese over digital tax

The U.S. Trade Representative’s office said its “Section 301” investigation found that the French tax was “inconsistent with prevailing principles of international tax policy, and is unusually burdensome for affected U.S. companies,” including Google, Facebook, Apple and Amazon.com. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said the government was exploring whether to open similar investigations into the digital services taxes of Austria, Italy and Turkey. “The USTR is focused on countering the growing protectionism of EU member states, which unfairly targets U.S. companies,” Lighthizer said. His statement made no mention of proposed digital taxes in Canada or Britain. The U.S. trade agency said it would collect public comments through Jan. 14 on its proposed tariff list as well as the option of imposing fees or restrictions on French services, with a public hearing scheduled for Jan. 7. It did not specify an effective date for the proposed 100 per cent duties. The list targets ...