Obama to propose tax on companies’ foreign profit

President Barack Obama plans to ask Congress to tax U.S. corporate profit accumulated overseas to pay for a $478 billion public works program. Under the proposal, an estimated $2.1 trillion that multinationals have amassed in profit abroad would be taxed once at a rate of 14%, while future foreign earnings would be taxed at 19%. Currently, these offshore profits are not taxed until they are repatriated.