Consumer spending sank at a 3.5% annual rate, similar to its third-quarter drop, despite a big rise in real after-tax income, thanks to the huge drop in petrol prices.

尽管由于石油价格大减，实际税后收入已较大增长，但消费者开销仍以3.5%的年速率缩减，与第三季度类似。

youdao

One reason is that many corporations, despite claims to the contrary, don’t mind a complex tax code with a high statutory rate — often because few large companies pay anything close to 35 percent.

其中一个原因是许多公司对于一个有着高税率的复杂征税制度并不在乎，尽管它们的主张恰恰相反，通常是因为很少有大公司的纳税额会接近利润35%的最高联邦企业税率。

youdao

Despite inheriting a disastrous economy from the Labour Party in 1979 the top income-tax rate was 98% and public-sector strikes were crippling British industry she managed to increase growth and productivity to such an extent that she could leave office with a top tax rate of 40% and growth rates mirroring those of her beloved America.

WSJ: Andrew Roberts: The Genius of Thatcherism Will Endure

Small-cap stocks have rallied more strongly than large-caps this year, despite their historically weaker ability to avoid taxes and the likelihood that an end-of-year repeal of the Bush tax rate cuts would fall more heavily on entrepreneurial small companies.

FORBES: The Corporate Tax Debate? Ignore It and Think About Your Taxes