BP plc (NYSE:BP) Reveals US Tax Changes Will Cost $1.5 Billion In Q4

BP plc

BP plc (NYSE:BP) earlier this week made a statement outlining that it would soon be reviewing its deferred tax situation following the decline in the U.S. corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%. In the fourth quarter of 2017 the company hopes to take a one-time, non-cash charge of $1.5 billion.

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It was last week that Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS.A) disclosed that it would see a similar charge of about $2.5 billion in its reporting of fourth-quarter earnings.

Experts believe that in the long-term the companies should be able to see gains from the change but it is worth mentioning that neither commented in relation to the matter. BP was confident in its assertion that the future U.S. after-tax earnings would be impacted in a positive way by the tax laws of the United States.

It is not only the oil industry which will be impacted by the value of its tax-deferred assets. The financial sector will also be subjected to some penalties.

A financial expert familiar with the matter opined, “Lowering the corporate tax rate decreases the value of tax-deferred assets that companies bank during unprofitable periods that they can later use to offset future tax liability when good times return. Cutting the corporate tax rate reduces the value of the tax-deferred assets.”

At this point in time, most of the big banks and oil companies are anticipating a lot of changes. For Shell and BP as well as a wide array of other oil producers, the recent slash to marginal tax rate pulls along as the biggest benefit in line with the new tax law.

It goes without saying that different companies will have different ways of accounting for their capital spending. BP’s share price in Tuesday’s premarket was not negatively impacted by the expected charges. It was on Friday that one analyst disclosed that the tax change would be associated with an immediate short-term cost.

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