Container-shipping companies have found lots of ways to spend their enormous pandemic profits. They’re lifting staff pay, making acquisitions and returning heaps of cash to shareholders.
One person who won’t benefit much is you, the taxpayer. Based on their recent financial filings, I calculate big European container lines AP Moller-Maersk A/S, CMA CGM SA and Hapag-Lloyd AG owe just 1% or 2% of their bumper shipping profits in taxes.
This jarring outcome is due to the shipping industry’s highly unusual taxation arrangements: The companies pay a fixed amount based on the tonnage of their vessels, rather than a percentage of their earnings. More ...
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