France says it hopes to defuse a looming trade war with the U.S. about a digital services tax by negotiating the matter with the help of international bodies.
Washington believes the digital services tax will weigh disproportionately on U.S. technology companies.
Economy Minister Bruno Le-Maire said on Tuesday that France would make special efforts in the next 15 days to hammer out a solution with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
He added that he had already telephone with his U.S. counterpart, Steven Mnuchin, about the matter.
“The French tax is not discriminatory,” said Le-Maire.
The U.S. is weighing retaliatory sanctions on French products like champagne and cheese, arguing that the French levy is designed to harm companies like Amazon, Facebook and Google.
An OECD proposal from October has called for taxes to be levied not on the basis of where a firm is incorporated, but on the basis of where it provides services and earns profits.
Le-Maire hopes to meet Mnuchin on the sidelines of the Davos summit, scheduled for January 21-24.
He made his comments after meeting EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan, who promised full support to France in the matter.
