5 top EU economies warn US about tax plans

The European Union's top five economies are warning the United States that its massive tax overhaul could contravene some of its international obligations and risks "having a major distortive impact on international trade."

In a letter to U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, the finance ministers of Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Spain wrote they had "significant concerns" about three tax initiatives in particular, including the so-called base erosion and anti-abuse tax Senate bill.

In a letter seen by The Associated Press, the five wrote that "it is important that the U.S. government's rights over domestic tax policy be exercised in a way that adheres with international obligations to which it has signed-up."