Now Roquefort: US eyes tariffs on $2.4B in French imports
PAUL WISEMAN
AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is proposing tariffs on up to $2.4 billion worth of French imports — including Roquefort cheese, handbags, lipstick and sparkling wine — in retaliation for France's tax on American tech giants like Google, Amazon and Facebook.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative charged Monday that France's new digital services tax discriminates against U.S. companies. The trade office will accept public comments on the tariffs, which could hit 100%, through Jan. 6 and hold a hearing Jan. 7.
The French tax is designed to prevent tech companies from dodging taxes by putting headquarters in low-tax European Union countries. It imposes a 3% annual levy on French revenues of digital companies with yearly global sales