LIMA Dec 29 Argentina's new center-right
government is cutting excise taxes on new cars in a bid to
bolster local automaking, the country's production minister said
on Tuesday.
The government of Mauricio Macri will analyze the impacts of
the lowered taxes after six months and modify them as needed,
Production Minister Francisco Cabrera said.
A tax on cars that cost more than 350,000 pesos ($27,000)
will fall to 10 percent from 30 percent while a tax on luxury
vehicles that cost more than 800,000 pesos will fall to 20 from
50 percent, Cabrera said.
"We're eliminating red tape and distortions that limited
investments with a focus on generating more and better jobs,"
Cabrera told reporters. "There's confidence in the country's
productive capability that is waking up."
Cabrera said that he expects some $3.8 billion in
investments in local auto-making through 2017.
Argentina's car industry has struggled in recent years due
to a stagnant domestic economy and a regional slowdown,
particularly in main trading partner Brazil.
Auto production in Argentina dropped 16.6 percent on the
year in November, with exports plunging 52.4 percent, according
to the ADEFA association of vehicle makers.
The president of ADEFA, Enrique Alemany, praised the
government's decision and said the tax cuts would result in more
car models and jobs.
(Reporting By Walter Bianchi, Writing by Mitra Taj; Editing by
David Gregorio)