South Korean President has doubled down on a corporate tax cut in a response to arguments against tax giveaways for the wealthy and big corporations.

“Lowering the tax rate to the level of other OECD countries will bolster industrial competitiveness and eventually make a positive impact on the livelihoods of middle- and low-income families,” President Yoon Suk-yeol told reporters as he entered his office in Seoul on Friday. His remark comes a day after the finance ministry proposed lowering the maximum corporate tax rate to 22 percent, the average rate in the members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) with an aim to help corporations enhance their competitiveness and add more value to the nation’s economy. Currently, the rate stands at 25 percent.

“Heavy taxes imposed big burdens on corporations in the previous administration. Lowering them will help companies carry out business activities more actively, resulting in more economic growth,” he added.

Government policy should put middle- and low-income families at its center. Lowering the corporate tax will eventually bring benefits to their livelihoods, stressed the president.

By Pulse

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