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Gustavo Haddad: Tax cuts will help Brazil's economy Investors in Brazil will get a better return on their money after the government reduced capital gains tax (CGT) on long-term financial investments and abolished social contribution taxes (PIS and COFINS) on financial revenues.

Saudi Arabia has cut the corporate tax rate to encourage foreign investment that will create job opportunities for Saudi nationals. Tax practitioners also believe the move is linked to internationalizing the tax code in preparation for the kingdom's impending entry into the WTO.

The government of the Philippines is planning to launch a complaint to the WTO over Thailand's excise tax on imported motor vehicles. Cesar Purisima, the Philippines' trade secretary, is concerned that Thailand's trade barrier could affect exports.

The Asia Pacific region offers dynamic opportunities and unique challenges for global businesses. Every business decision involves intricately entwined issues, not the least of which is its tax implications.

The new limitation-on-benefits article is the chief feature of the newly-amended US/Barbados tax treaty, according to Margie Rollinson, Michael Mundaca, Lilo Hester and David Benson of Ernst & Young

An income deposit security is a work-in-progress. But the tax benefits are already apparent, believe Richard Willoughby, Alexandra Kau, Gary Gartner and Corrado Cardarelli of Torys

A reform in France's 2004 Finance Bill means that French companies need to think carefully about how they distribute their earnings, warns Stéphane Chaouat, of Weil, Gotshal & Manges

Type of deal Valuer Acquirer Target Adviser to acquirer (tax) Adviser to target (tax) M&A £8.9 billion ($16.2 billion) Banco Santander Central Hispano Abbey National Clifford Chance, London, David Harkness Slaughter and May, London, William Watson, Michael Lane M&A $1.35 billion Associated British Foods Associated British Foods agreed to acquire the yeast and spice businesses of Burns Philp Cravath, Swaine & Moore, New York, Lewis Steinberg, Laura Angelilli Herbert Smith, London, Howard Murray, Lindsay J'Afari-Pak M&A ?3.5 billion ($4.2 billion) Fortress The Federal Insurance Institute for Salaried Employees (Bundesanstalt für Angestellte / BfA) agreed to sell its entire share holding in GAGFAH Linklaters Oppenhoff & Rädler, Frankfurt, Florian Schultz Haarmann Hemmelrath, Berlin, Stephan Busch; Deloitte, Düsseldorf, Jörg Stifter M&A ?400 million ($482.7 million) Syngenta Advanta Seeds KPMG, London, Andrew Gavan, James Madams; Philadelphia, James Curran; Allen & Overy, London, Negin Minakaran, David Lewis; Amsterdam, Olaf van der Donk Herbert Smith, London, Mark Geday; Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London, Caspar Fox M&A Undisclosed IBM AlphaBlox Cravath, Swaine & Moore, New York, Lewis Steinberg, Megan Healey Fenwick & West, Mountain View, California, Ron Schrotenboer, Neal Gordon; Baker & McKenzie, Palo Alto, Stewart Lipeles M&A £135 million ($245 million) Qatar National Bank Ansbacher Holdings Simmons & Simmons, London, Paul Hale, Zoe Feller, Darren Oswick Allen & Overy, London, Zoe Hammond M&A Undisclosed David Barclay and Frederick Barclay Hollinger International agreed to sell The Telegraph Group Lovells, London, Daniel Friel, Philip Harle Hollinger International were advised by Herbert Smith, London, Derek Hill M&A Undisclosed Petrochemical Industries Company of Kuwait. The deal involved the formation of 2 new joint ventures in Canada (MEGlobal) and Europe (Equipolymers) Dow Chemical Company ethylene glycol (EG) and polyethylene terephthalate resins (PET) businesses KPMG LLP, London, Andrew Gavan, James Madams, Canada, Steven Hurowitz; Ashursts, London, Richard Palmer, Klaus Herkenroth; Ogilvy Renault, Canada, Adrienne Oliver; In-house, Dow Chemical Co Tax Dept, Charles Hahn, Jean-Pierre Lallement M&A $193 million Ainsworth Lumber Boise Cascade Corporation, Abitibi-Consolidated Company of Canada, Northwestern Mutual and Allstate Insurance Company agreed to sell Voyageur Panel Koffman Kalef Business Lawyers, Vancouver, Doug Side McCarthy Tétrault, Toronto, Patrick McCay M&A Undisclosed IBM Schlumberger Business Continuity Services KPMG LLP, London, Ian Latter, Paul Radcliffe; Jones Day, London, Robert Gaut Bevan Ashford, London, Angus Bauer M&A ?213 million ($263 million) Wolseley UPM-Kymmene agreed to sell Brooks Group Eversheds, Leeds, Alison Morris Norton Rose, London, Jeremy Reynolds M&A $456 million Scottish and Southern Energy American Electric Power agreed to sell the Ferrybridge and Fiddler's Ferry power plants Dundas & Wilson, London, Jim Hillan Lovells, London, Matthew Oliver Type of deal Value Issuer Lead managers Adviser to Issuer Adviser to lead managers Notes issue ?700 million ($842 million) Vivendi Universal J.P. Morgan Securities and Banc of America Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, Paris, Stéphane Salou, Nicolas Toussaint Béranger Linklaters, Paris, Edouard Chapellier IPO £527 million ($955 million) Premier Foods Merrill Lynch International, ABN Amro Rothschild and JPMorgan Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London, Jonathan Cooklin, Piers Curle Weil, Gotshal & Manges, Sarah Priestly, Janice Seah, Jane Scobie Securitization £418 million ($769 million) Norwich Union Morgan Stanley and The Royal Bank of Scotland Slaughter and May, London, Graham Airs, Alisa Greda Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London, Michael Thompson, Laurent Sykes Securitization C$300 million ($230 million) Gloucester Credit Card Trust and MBNA Canada Bank BMO Nesbitt Burns, CIBC World Markets, Scotia Capital, RBC Dominion Securities and TD Securities McCarthy Tétrault, Toronto, Gabrielle Richards, James Warnock Torys, Toronto, John Tobin Financing for the acquisition of real estate ?1.2 billion ($1.48 billion) Joint venture between Deutsche Bank and CDC IXIS Deutsche Bank Gianni, Origoni, Grippo & Partners, Milan, Massimo Agostini, Claudia Gregori Studio Chiomenti

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is likely to hold that shareholder relief on dividends in the form of an imputation tax credit is incompatible with the free-movement-of-capital principle under articles 56 and 58 of the EC Treaty.

New rules will make the declaration of non-trade income easier in Singapore, explain Ajit Prabhu & Chan Huang Chay, of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu