The VAT is used as a trade strategy to accomplish the same benefits as currency devaluation.  The VAT strategy is called “fiscal devaluation” and I’ll explain it at the bottom.  It took me three years to understand the power of the VAT in trade strategy, so I understand why it…

I’ve been talking to R’s and D’s on the VAT, getting a lot more support in the past.  I’ll be posting more later on exactly how other countries use the VAT for their trade advantage.  But this article is interesting.  The American Council for Capital Formation supports a type of VAT…

Here is a good resource on EU Value Added Taxes issued by the European Commission in 2013 called “VAT Rates Applied in the Member States of the European Union.”  It has a comprehensive list of EU member state VAT rates, both general and reduced rates. Update:  Here is a 2012 KPMG…

David Brooks, op-ed columnist for the NY Times, was giving advice to Obama today in his column.  One item was a value added tax that I’ve written about before. Second, Obama could nurture investment by starting a debate on the sort of consumption tax plan Michael Graetz describes in his…

From Business Week Harvard Economist Gita Gopinath Offers a Euro Cure By Rina Chandran on February 14, 2013 http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-02-14/harvard-economist-gita-gopinath-offers-a-euro-cure When French President François Hollande unveiled a plan in November for a business tax credit and higher sales taxes as a way to revive the economy, he was implementing an idea championed by…

Here is the slideshow presentation I gave to a group in San Diego yesterday.  The event was called “Manufacturing in the Golden State.”  It describes the math about how a consumption tax could reduce the domestic tax burden, include imports in our tax base, narrow the trade deficit, increase U.S….

The debate over potential U.S. consumption taxes is still immature.  Its a high vs. low tax debate.  Its a regressive vs. progressive debate.  Those are important points, but have long been resolved in the 150+ other countries that include a VAT in their tax mix.  The proper use of a…

Tax reform is discussed in terms of progressivity, gross revenue, compliance and administrative costs.  All key factors. But how does the U.S. tax system impact our trade deficit?  The answer is “quite a lot”.  And not in the ways you’ll hear from the talking heads. The effective tax rate (different…

Reposted from the Daily Media Report of the American Iron and Steel Institute ******** US To Issue AD And CV Duties On China, Vietnam Wind Towers January 22, 2013 | Daily Media Report (article from Steel Business Briefing) The US Department of Commerce (DOC) will issue antidumping and countervailing duty…

I was working on an updated  map of nations that use a Value Added Tax (VAT) for the Coalition for a Prosperous America and thought I’d share it. Nations in RED have a VAT. Nations in BLUE don’t. Basically, the VAT is a national sales tax on products sold, at various levels…