US complies with WTO Boeing ruling to shun EU sanctions

The United States formally notified the World Trade Organization on Wednesday of the elimination of a state tax break for aerospace giant Boeing to avoid retaliation by the European Union.

The WTO in April 2019 upheld an EU complaint that a preferential tax rate given to Boeing by Washington state violated global trade rules against subsidies.

The state legislature in late March ended the policy, which provided a 40 percent tax reduction for aerospace manufacturing, a move Boeing supported to end the long-standing dispute in which the EU was seeking $10 billion in retaliation.

“With Washington state’s repeal of this relatively minor tax reduction, the United States has fully implemented the WTO’s recommendation, ending this dispute,” US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement.