The coffee giant Starbucks and Italian carmaker Fiat are expected to feel the European Commission’s wrath this week over their sweetheart tax deals with Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The decisions are likely to be the first of a series by the commission, covering such companies as Apple and Amazon, who may find themselves paying billions in back taxes.
The commission’s powerful competition services could make their first announcement tomorrow, with Fiat facing around €150 million (£110 million) in tax repayments and Starbucks around €20 million.
With Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition commissioner, cancelling a scheduled visit to China citing pressing job-related matters, speculation is rife that the regulator is ready to announce the end of a two-year investigation into the preferential tax treatment from Dutch and Luxembourg authorities.
The commission said earlier this year that Starbucks may have avoided taxes when one of its Dutch units paid millions of euros to a UK-based arm of the company for a technique to roast coffee beans. Starbucks insists it complies “with all relevant rules, laws and OECD guidelines”, and pays a global effective tax rate of around 33 per cent. In Fiat’s case, the commission questioned Luxembourg’s arrangement with one of its units, Fiat Finance & Trade.
Full content: The Guardian
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
Pfizer Settles Remaining Effexor XR Antitrust Claims for $25.5 Million
Apr 29, 2024 by
CPI
South Korean Regulator Approves LG Uplus and Kakao Mobility EV Charging Venture
Apr 29, 2024 by
CPI
Federal Judge Dismisses Doctors’ Antitrust Suit Against Ohio Health System
Apr 29, 2024 by
CPI
Paramount CEO Bob Bakish Steps Down as Merger Inches Closer
Apr 29, 2024 by
CPI
EU Brands Apple’s iPadOS as Gatekeeper in Tech Crackdown
Apr 29, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI