Trump's Corporate Tax Proposal In Perspective

On Wednesday, Steven Mnuchin unveiled a new plan to slash taxes for business and accelerate the pace of economic growth. Referring to the proposal as the "biggest tax cuts in history", the Trump administration is planning to cut the U.S. corporate tax rate from 35 percent to just 15 percent, one of the proposal's core measures. Mnuchin said that the plan will pay for itself "through growth and reduction of deductions and closing loopholes". However, many economists claim the plan will be short lived and could add trillions fo the deficit over the next decade.

Currently, the U.S. has a high rate of corporate taxation by international standards. If Trump's plan succeeds, the U.S. would become one of the 20 countries with the lowest rates of corporate tax, sitting at the same level as Canada and Ireland. Using Deloitte data, the following infographic compares the current and planned U.S. corporate tax rate to a selection of other nations. Ireland is notable on the infographic as having a very low rate of just 12.5 percent, a rate which has helped it lure several tech heavyweights (including Google and Facebook) into establishing their European headquarters in Dublin.