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PARIS — France on Thursday became the first major economy to impose a tax on digital giants, with parliament passing the legislation in defiance of a probe ordered by President Donald Trump that could trigger reprisal tariffs.

The new law aims at plugging a taxation gap that has seen some internet heavyweights paying next to nothing in countries where they make huge profit.

The legislation — dubbed the GAFA tax — an acronym for Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon — was passed by a simple show of hands in the Senate upper house after previously being passed by the national assembly lower chamber.

But the French move drew an angry response from Trump even before the legislation was passed, with the president ordering an investigation that the French economy minister said was unprecedented in the history of French-US relations. 

The law will levy a 3 per cent tax on total annual revenues of the largest tech firms providing services to French consumers.

“The United States is very concerned that the digital services tax which is expected to pass the French Senate tomorrow unfairly targets American companies,” US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement.

But French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire France rejected the US reaction on Thursday, saying “threats” were not the way to resolve such disputes.

“Between allies, I believe we can and must resolve our differences in another way than through threats,” he told the French senate ahead of the vote.

“France is a sovereign state and it alone decides on its taxation mechanisms and it will continue to do so,” he said.

Unfair trade practices? 

Le Maire said he was warned about the so-called Section 301 investigation during a “long conversation” with US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Wednesday, saying it was the first time such a step had been taken in the history of French-US relations.

This type of investigation is the primary tool the Trump administration has used in the trade war with China to justify tariffs against what the United States says are unfair trade practices.

The measure was initially adopted by the lower house on July 4.

Last month, top G-20 finance chiefs meeting in Japan agreed there was an urgent need to find a global system to tax Internet giants like Google and Facebook but clashed over how to do it.

But they welcomed a set of proposed measures laid out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, a forum for advanced economies.

“We will redouble our efforts for a consensus-based solution with a final report by 2020,” they said in a statement.

Washington has been pushing through the G-20 for an overarching agreement on taxation.

Such a move is supported by Google which believes it would mean Silicon Valley tech giants would pay less tax in the US and more in other jurisdictions, in a departure from the longstanding practice of paying most taxes in a company’s home country.

The section 301 investigation, which is being run by the US trade representative’s office, has said it will hold hearings to allow for public comment on the French tax issue for several weeks before issuing a final report.

The move was applauded by the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) which said the French law would retroactively require US internet giants to turn over a percentage of their revenues from the start of 2019. 

“This is a critical step toward preventing protectionist taxes on global trade,” CCIA official Matt Schruers said in a statement, calling on France “to lead the effort toward more ambitious global tax reform, instead of the discriminatory national tax measures that harm global trade”.

DOHA — The US and Qatar have agreed a raft of contracts worth billions of dollars during a visit to Washington by the Gulf state's emir, including an $8 billion deal on a petrochemical project.

Qatar Petroleum and US energy giant Chevron Phillips Chemical inked the deal to develop a "world class" petrochemical plant in the US Gulf Coast region, Doha's state-owned petroleum company said on Wednesday.

Qatar's Energy Minister Saad Al Kaabi and Chevron Phillips Chemical head Mark Lashier signed the agreement on Tuesday at the White House.

US President Donald Trump and Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al  Thani attended the signing ceremony held in front of US flags and the Qatari colours, according to an image published by Chevron Phillips Chemical.

The plant, scheduled to be onstream in 2024, will boast the world's largest ethylene cracker with a capacity of 2 million tonnes per year, Qatar Petroleum said.

Trump and Sheikh Tamim reiterated their "commitment to further advancing the high-level strategic cooperation between our two countries", according to a joint statement carried on Wednesday by Qatar's official QNA news agency.

"We discussed our extensive and increasing economic partnership, including these mutually beneficial transactions," they said.

Sheikh Tamim, who arrived in the US on Monday, also met with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and National Security Adviser John Bolton, according to Qatari state media.

Qatar's defence ministry has committed to acquiring advanced surface-to-air NASAM and Patriot missiles made by US arms manufacturer Raytheon, the statement said, without providing further details.

National carrier Qatar Airways will purchase five Boeing 777 freighters and large-cabin aircraft from US business jet maker Gulfstream Aerospace, it added.

The airline Tweeted an image of its chief executive Akbar Al Baker and Boeing chief executive Kevin McAllister signing the deal as Trump and Sheikh Tamim looked on.

"The US and Qatar are partners, allies, and friends. We look forward to continue that friendship, for the prosperity and happiness of our two peoples," Sheikh Tamim Tweeted.

PARIS — France announced on Tuesday it would impose new taxes on plane tickets of up to 18 euros per flight, joining other EU states seeking to limit the environmental impact of air travel.

The government said that the funds from tickets for flights originating in France would be used to create less-polluting transport options as concerns grow about carbon emissions from planes.

The move, which will take effect from 2020, will see a tax of 1.5 euros ($1.7) imposed on economy-class tickets on internal flights and those within Europe, Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne said.

It will rise to 9 euros for within the European Union in business class, three euros outside the EU in economy class and a maximum 18 euros for flights outside the European Union in business class, she added.

The new measure is expected to bring in some 180 million euros a year which will be invested in greener transport infrastructure, notably rail, she said. 

"France is committed to the taxation of air transport but there is an urgency here," she said.

It will only be applied on outgoing flights and not those flying into the country, Borne added.

Flights to the French Mediterranean island of Corsica and also the French overseas departments — which are hugely dependent on air links for their existence — will be exempt, she said.

'Penalise competitiveness' 

Shares in Air France fell sharply, down almost 4 per cent to trade at 8.54 euros. Its German competitor Lufthansa also traded lower with its shares falling 2.50 per cent to 14.8 euros.

Air France slammed the measure, which it said would "strongly penalise its competitiveness" at a time when it needed to invest, notably in renewing its fleet, to reduce its carbon footprint.

A similar tax was introduced in Sweden in April 2018, which imposed an added charge of up to 40 euros on every ticket in a bid to lessen the impact of air travel on the climate.

Sweden has seen the development of a movement called "flight shaming" (flygskam) spearheaded by 16-year-old schoolgirl Greta Thunberg who has become a symbol of the fight against climate change.

The industry has been under fire over its carbon emissions, which at 285 grams of CO2 emitted per kilometre travelled by a passenger far exceed all other modes of transport.

Road transportation follows at 158 and rail travel is at 14, according to European Environment Agency figures.

"The sector is under considerable pressure," Alexandre de Juniac, the chief executive of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), admitted at a meeting of the industry body in June.

‘Won't deter from flying' 

So-called ecotaxes have met with heavy criticism from the IATA.

It argues that the effectiveness of such taxes is "doubtful" and said "no government that introduced a ticket tax has been able to demonstrate that such tax reduced CO2 emissions".

The industry is already subject to the EU carbon emissions trading system and, from 2020, to a new global mechanism called the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation. 

Andrew Murphy, aviation expert with the NGO Transport & Environment in Brussels which presses for cleaner transport, said that the tax was far from unique in Europe with similar measures in Britain, Germany, Norway, Italy, as well as Sweden.

"I don't think that because there is a 18 euro tax it will deter anyone from flying," he told AFP. "It will have some minor impact on demand."

French President Emmanuel Macron is seeking to cast himself a champion of the fight against climate change and ensuring that the 2015 Paris accord on fighting global warming is respected.

He went into this month's G-20 summit in Japan declaring that climate change was a "red line" and emerged with a statement from 19 of its members endorsing the Paris agreement — but without the United States after President Donald Trump pulled out of the agreement in 2017.

Macron is aware he needs to tread carefully on climate issues after rising fuel taxes — which aimed to help France meet its Paris climate accord goals — helped spark the yellow vest street protests against his government last year.

AMMAN — Saudi Seasons has recently announced the simultaneous launch of Taif and Souda Seasons summer festivals slated for August 2019, to emphasise the country’s competitive tourism strategy and highlight its historical and traditional elements, as well as its produce of roses, fruit, and honey, according to a statement of the organisers.

The upcoming festivals will include fun activities for all ages, and is designed to attract Saudi, Arab and international families to participate.

The joint launch of Taif and Souda Seasons under the umbrella of the Saudi Seasons follows the country's efforts to diversify the Saudi economy by focusing on the tourism sector. 

LONDON — World stock markets were softer on Monday on investor disappointment over the fading prospects of substantial cuts in US interest rates following better-than-expected jobs data last week, traders said. 

Taking their cue from an earlier sell-off in Asia, European stock markets were lower across the board as deep reductions in US borrowing costs appeared to be off the cards, at least for now.

Among the leading European indices, the blue-chip CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt were both down by just under half a per cent in mid-afternoon trade, while London’s FTSE showed a loss of around 0.1 per cent.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Wall Street opened down by around 0.3 per cent and headed lower in early trading.

“Global equities are quietly softer across the board on softer-than-expected German data, follow-through on Friday’s falling Fed rate cut blues, and a plethora of regional stories that added to the risk-off tone,” said OANDA analyst Edward Moya. 

“Deutsche Bank’s mixed review on their radical overhaul, [Turkish President] Erdogan’s sacking of his central bank chief, uncertainty on how quickly Iran will raise their nuclear enrichment programme, and Morgan Stanley’s downgrade of investment guidance on global stocks are keeping markets in the red,” Moya said.

While the dollar was steady against its main rivals, it surged against the Turkish lira after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sacked the head of the country’s central bank following months of tensions over high borrowing costs.

Erdogan has repeatedly railed against high interest rates and called for them to be lowered to stimulate growth.

The US jobs data on Friday suggested that the world’s top economy is in better shape than anticipated and would not need substantial rate cuts to be kick-started.

Investors had been hoping that the Fed would cut US borrowing costs by as much as half a percentage point at its next policy meeting later this month, but such a likelihood now appears to be fading. 

Traders said investors’ focus would now switch to the congressional testimony of Fed chief Jerome Powell this week, with investors hoping he will provide some forward guidance on the bank’s plans.

Also up this week will be the release of minutes from the Fed’s June meeting, while US and Chinese officials are working to schedule top-level trade talks.

SEOUL — Samsung Electronics said on Friday it expects operating profit to tumble 56 per cent for the second quarter of this year in the face of a weakening chip market.

The world's largest maker of smartphones and memory chips has enjoyed record profit in recent years despite a series of setbacks, but is now struggling, with chip prices falling as global supply increases while demand weakens.

Operating profit for the April to June period is forecast to reach around 6.5 trillion won ($5.6 billion), down 56 per cent from a year earlier, the firm said in a statement.

Revenue is expected to fall 4.2 per cent to 56 trillion won. Samsung is scheduled to report final results later this month.

The firm is the flagship subsidiary of the giant Samsung Group, by far the biggest of the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business in the world's 11th largest economy, and it is crucial to South Korea's economic health.

Samsung's share price was down 1.2 per cent in early trade. 

Samsung launched its top-end S10 5G smartphone earlier this year, after South Korea won the global race to commercially launch the world's first nationwide 5G network.

But in April it made a high-profile decision to push back the release of its new Galaxy Fold phones after reviewers provided with early devices reported screen problems within days of use.

While Samsung's device was not the first folding handset, the smartphone giant was expected to help spark demand and potentially revive a sector that has been struggling for new innovations.

The South Korean firm had spent nearly eight years developing the Galaxy Fold as part of its strategy to propel growth with groundbreaking gadgets. 

The firm is yet to announce its new release date. 

 Tokyo factor 

Samsung supplies screens and memory chips for its own smartphones and Apple, and server chips for cloud companies such as Amazon.

But it is also one of the South's major semiconductor manufacturers that are being affected by Tokyo's recent restriction of exports to South Korea.

The measures — which raises the stakes in a protracted dispute over South Korean court rulings requiring Japanese firms to compensate victims of a wartime forced labour policy — are expected to significantly slow the export of several key materials used by Samsung.

Tadashi Uno, display research director at IHS Markit, said an end-product that could be affected by Tokyo's newly announced restrictions is Samsung's Galaxy Fold.

"The display of the Samsung Galaxy Fold — now in pre-order status in the United States — is produced utilising fluorinated polyimide film from Sumitomo Chemical, which is a Japanese electronic materials firm," he said. 

"South Korea-based Kolon Industries could act as an alternative supplier for the Samsung foldable smartphone display."

Samsung is also set to unveil its latest phablet, the Galaxy Note 10, in New York next month, but analysts say it's unclear whether its cutting edge products would do well in the global market.

"Unlike South Korea, many countries are still without 5G network," said CW Chung, an analyst with Nomura Securities in Seoul, told AFP.

"And this gives overseas customers fewer reasons to buy a 5G phone, which also happen to be quite expensive."

NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday hailed a “new chapter for India” as his re-elected government unveiled what he called a “green” budget aimed at reviving growth and creating a $5-trillion economy.

India was recently leap-frogged by China as the world’s fastest-growing major country, with unemployment in Asia’s third-biggest economy at its highest since the 1970s.

In the first budget since Modi won a second term by a landslide in May, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said she wanted to boost foreign direct investment (FDI) and infrastructure spending.

“The government will examine suggestions of further opening up FDI in aviation, media, and, insurance sectors in consultation with stakeholders,” said Sitharaman.

Sitharaman, 59, also said India’s public sector banks would be injected with $10.2 billion to tackle bad loans.

A sudden collapse of India’s shadow banking sector in 2018 and bad loans had resulted in a liquidity crunch in Asia’s third-largest economy. 

Sitharaman said that nearly 20 million new houses would be constructed by 2022 and that all rural household would have drinking water by 2024.

She also announced that the central government deficit to 3.3 per cent of gross domestic product in fiscal 2019 from 3.4 per cent in fiscal 2018. 

This would be achieved by divestments, including of Air India, increased excise duties on petrol, diesel, precious metals and tobacco, and higher taxes for those earning between 20 million and 50 million rupees ($290,000-730,000).

Moody’s said in a research note, however, that achieving a lower fiscal deficit while maintaining support for growth and incomes would be “very challenging”.

“We expect the economy to grow relatively slowly, despite the government’s income support measures,” Moody’s analyst Gene Fang said.

Electric cars 

In a country with some of the world’s most polluted cities, the budget also included tax breaks for individuals on the purchase of electric cars.

The government aims to invest in infrastructure and other incentives for electric vehicles to reduce carbon emissions and air pollution.

It also wants to increase the use of rivers for transportation, with the volume of cargo on the Ganges set to almost quadruple over the next four years.

“Sitharaman’s budget focused on something for every industry including tax relief for startups and thrust on infrastructure spending,” Mumbai-based independent economist Ashutosh Datar told AFP.

The government on Thursday predicted India would rebound and grow at 7 per cent this year and also outlined plans on how to meet the target of doubling its economy by 2025 to $5 trillion. 

The annual growth in the last fiscal year dipped to 6.8 per cent from 7.2 per cent in 2017-18, too slow to create enough jobs for the more than a million Indians entering the labour market every month, economists say.

India is ranked as the world’s sixth-biggest economy just behind Britain and ahead of France. The US and China occupy the first and second spots with $19 trillion and $12 trillion.

On Thursday, India’s chief economic advisor K.V. Subramanian laid out a strategic blueprint for achieving India’s growth goals through a “virtuous cycle” of savings, investment and exports.

Modilauded Sitharaman’s plans it as a “green budget focusing on environment, electric mobility and solar sector”.

“This budget is a roadmap for new India and is one of hope. It will transform agriculture sector of the country,” Modi said.

NEW DELHI — India on Thursday predicted that its economy will rebound and grow at 7 per cent this year as it outlined plans on how to double its economy by 2025 to $5 trillion.

The forecasts are part of an annual Economic Survey released before the full budget on Friday and sheds light on the state of the Asian giant's economic health.

India remained the world's fastest-growing major economy for nearly two years, outpacing China after the right-wing government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi took power in 2014. 

But a fall in domestic demand lowered its growth rate in the last quarter to 5.8 per cent, pushing it to a five-year low and behind China's 6.4 per cent in the same period. 

The slowdown was largely linked to a slump in domestic consumption that has impacted tax collection amid rising state expenditure on the distressed farm sector.

The annual growth in the last fiscal year remained at 6.8 per cent, down from 7.2 per cent in 2017-18.

The report says India's economy will expand through investment and consumption along with a stable political government. 

Modi, who won a second landslide victory in recent national elections, is likely to push up government spending and accelerate economic growth through tax reliefs. 

The survey said India needs to sustain a growth rate of more than 8 per cent to become a $5 trillion economy by 2025, up from $2.61 trillion now.

India is ranked the sixth-biggest economy just behind Britain and ahead of France. The US and China occupy the first and second spots with $19 trillion and $12 trillion.

India's chief economic advisor K.V. Subramanian said the survey lays out a strategic blueprint for achieving the goal, through "virtuous cycle" of savings, investment and exports.

"The key theme is about shifting gears, we have grown well but we need to shift gears at 8 per cent sustained growth," Subramanian told reporters at a press conference in New Delhi.

Modi, who in the election campaign came under sharp attack for falling short on creating jobs, tweeted that the report "outlines a vision to achieve a $5 trillion economy".

NEW YORK — Tesla reported a surge in second-quarter deliveries on Tuesday, while other US automakers suffered drops in sales for the first half of 2019, with higher vehicle costs weighing on consumers.

Shares of Tesla shot higher in after-hours trading after it reported delivering 95,200 vehicles during the quarter ending June 30, a record and an increase of more than 50 per cent over the prior quarter.

The company, which has faced worries about weakening demand for its electric vehicles, said in a securities filing, “we believe we are well positioned to continue growing total production and deliveries in Q3”.

Earlier, General Motors, Fiat Chrysler and Toyota were among the companies that reported drops in sales through the year’s midpoint, although Fiat Chrysler won a modest gain in sales in June.

Sales at Honda and Nissan also fell through the first half of the year. Ford reports sales on Wednesday.

The results were roughly in line with analyst forecasts and reflective of an auto market that has cooled somewhat, even as demand has stayed strong for larger autos.

Higher interest rates on auto loans have added to the drag on consumers, who already face higher vehicle costs, said Michelle Krebs, head of automotive relations at Cox Automotive. 

Cox is forecasting 2019 sales of 16.8 million, down three per cent from last year, with a drop to 16.5 million expected in 2020.

Annual sales have been above 17 million the last four years.

“We have seen retail sales weakening for some time,” Krebs said in an interview, adding that the effect has been mitigated somewhat by higher sales from companies who are taking advantage of tax incentives to refresh their fleets.

“,” she said.

General Motors reported a 4.2 per cent drop in first-half sales of 1.4 million following a 1.5 per cent dip in second quarter. 

The company’s fleet of larger crossover vehicles sold well, along with fully available versions of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, two popular pickups that were recently revamped.

However, overall sales of both the Sierra and Silverado fell compared with the year-ago period because some versions of the vehicles are still not widely available. A GM spokeswoman said more vehicles would be on the market in the second half of 2019.

“The US economy continues to grow at a healthy pace,” said GM Chief Economist Elaine Buckberg. “If the Fed cuts rates, as widely expected, lower financing costs will provide further support to auto sales.”

Fiat Chrysler bucks trend 

Fiat Chrysler’s auto sales for the first half of the year were down 2 per cent at 1.1 million.

A 2 per cent gain in June was propelled by a 45 per cent surge in Ram truck sales, which offset declines in the company’s other brands, including Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat.

The results suggest Ram has gained market share from GM’s Silverado during the latter’s launch period, Krebs said in a note from Cox.

Toyota North America reported a 3.1 per cent drop in first-half sales to 1.2 million, with a 3.5 per cent decline in June sales.

The company pointed to higher June sales of its RAV4 crossover vehicle. But sales of the Corolla and Camry sedans have fallen for the first six month so of the year.

Sales of the company’s luxury Lexus brand fell during the quarter but rose slightly during the first half of the year. 

VIENNA — The OPEC bloc of oil producers on Tuesday formally signed a new charter of cooperation with major allies, including Russia, one day after thrashing out the document at a marathon meeting.

The new agreement between OPEC and its so-called OPEC+ partners is being seen as a sign of the cartel’s efforts to stay relevant in a market which has been transformed by booming US shale oil output.

Saudi Oil Minister Khalid Al Falih hailed this week’s meeting as “historic” and said that “market volatility” meant that a new framework was needed with “more producer power than OPEC alone can provide”. 

OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo compared the new partnership to a marriage, telling reporters: “It’s for eternity!”

“We’re confident that with the course of time, probably by next time we meet, we may have some new members joining the charter,” Barkindo said. 

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak declared on Monday that all of OPEC’s ministers had agreed to prolong its daily production cuts. 

Speaking through an interpreter after Tuesday’s meeting, Novak said that the new cooperation accord between OPEC and its allies was not only the result of growing US output.

“We do not shape our strategy in response to US actions; we shape our actions in response to what the market does,” Novak said.

‘Unjustified’ sanctions 

The production cuts signed off on this week by OPEC and its allies had been agreed by Russia and OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia at the G-20 summit in Osaka last weekend.

OPEC+ comprises the cartel’s 14 member nations plus 10 extra crude producers: Russia, Mexico, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Malaysia, Oman, Sudan and South Sudan.

Monday’s gathering of OPEC ministers ran almost five hours late into the evening as ministers discussed the details of the new charter.

Iran was more sceptical of the idea and its Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said on leaving the meeting that the charter would have “no impact on OPEC and its mechanism or decision taking”.

Also speaking late on Monday, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al Falih said the charter would allow OPEC and non-OPEC countries to establish “a structure for technical meetings, ministry meetings, regular summits” with the OPEC secretariat in Vienna acting as “the main coordinator”.

While Monday’s agreement in Vienna had initially sent oil prices surging, on Tuesday they were more subdued amid fresh worries over the global economic outlook. 

Novak said on Tuesday that in his view oil market volatility was being worsened by “trade wars which are intensifying as we speak”. 

“We see sanctions being used freely without any justification and more and more frequently,” Novak added.