Merkel Signals Readiness to Heed Concerns on EU Tax
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Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the German government is listening to investor complaints about the proposed financial transactions tax and will take their views into account when designing the levy at a European level.
Merkel, in an interview in the Chancellery in Berlin today, recommitted her government to the tax, citing the disparity between commercial transactions subject to value-added tax and financial transactions that are “basically free.” At the same time, she signaled she’s sensitive to industry concerns the tax in its current form threatens to backfire, hurting pensions and damaging the wider economy without raising the revenue planned.