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Australia introduced capital gains tax in 1985, but the question of how its provisions interact with those in tax treaties has never been put to the test. Ian Dinnison, KPMG Melbourne looks at a new draft ruling from the Australian Taxation Office

In a surprise move, California proposes an online sales tax, but the odds are against it becoming law

Kiichi Miyazawa, the Japanese finance minister, has announced that he plans a huge reform of the Japanese tax system over the next three years. An advisory committee has been created to come up with reform recommendations.

US technology firm, Hewlett-Packard, is in talks to buy the consultancy division of big five accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. The discussions value PwC's consultancy division at around $18 billion.

Arthur Andersen has this month published a new study that could prove a useful tool for multinationals looking to lobby government on corporate tax issues. The international comparative study takes a look at the rules governing the setting of tax standards, tax inspections and the settlement of disputes in 17 major jurisdictions around the world. The study compares jurisdictional approaches and policy in three main areas, namely tax legislation, tax inspection and tax disputes. The countries surveyed are Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK and the US.

Hot on Germany's heels, French finance minister Laurent Fabius has announced a series of tax cuts worth around Ffr120 billion ($16 billion) over the next three years. The period of reform coincides neatly with the presidential elections planned for 2002. From this year, the corporation tax rate will be 37.77%, reducing annually until 2003 to 34.43%. These figures include the abolition of the additional 10% corporation tax, introduced in 1995, over the same time period and the immediate addition of a 3.3% increase in corporation tax.

The advocate general of the ECJ has opined against ACT payments and in favour of Hoechst and Metallgesellschaft under the freedom of establishment principle

UK-based law firm Lovells has announced that it is to open two new offices in Italy. The practices will be based in Rome and Milan, with the Milan office focusing primarily on corporate and financial work, and Rome on administrative, regulatory and governmental matters.

The Indonesian Ministry of Finance has announced the termination of its 1973 income and capital tax treaty with the Netherlands

The Isle of Man has put forward proposals aimed at revamping its existing regime and building on its success as an attractive business location