Boeing Received Illegal Tax Subsidy for 777X, WTO Panel Says
- Incentive that cuts a Washington state levy must be removed
- EU calls ruling ‘important victory’ for its aircraft industry
Rendering of the Boeing 777X
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Boeing Co. received an illegal tax break from Washington state as part of $8.7 billion in aid to assemble the 777X and manufacture the jetliner’s carbon-fiber wing there, the World Trade Organization said.
An incentive cutting a state levy on gross receipts by 40 percent is a prohibited subsidy that must be removed, a three-judge panel said Monday in Geneva. The tax break, which takes effect when the first 777X is delivered in 2020, gives an unfair advantage to the U.S. planemaker to the detriment of overseas manufacturers, the WTO determined.