A survey prepared by Andi in which 308 affiliated companies participated showed that the Petro Government’s tax reform project affects investment plans.
“It is evident the concern that companies have for the tax reform project that is being discussed, and that has the disproportionate goal of raising an additional $25 billion. This undoubtedly puts investment at risk and the possibility of companies to grow and hire staff, which is not a minor issue considering that unemployment reached 11% in July. We believe that the best tax reform for Colombia is economic growth, which has been reflected in the last year through different indicators, but we also have to be aware of the reality, which is that Colombia is not capable of absorbing a tax reform which, by far, would be the largest in the country’s history.” said Bruce Mac Master, president of Andi.
According to the results, in September, 68.5% of the companies described the business climate in the country as uncertain, with the tax reform bill being the main factor generating anxiety, with 57.8% of responses, but in addition to companies rating the investment climate as unfavorable, tax reform is also the main reason, with 68.3% of responses.
Then they appear the exchange rate (15.9%), political uncertainty due to the new government (15.9%), high inflation (14.3%) and legal certainty (14.3%).
According to the union, from the general results, 20.5% of companies describe the investment climate as unfavorable, a perception that has increased in recent months, given that in June the figure was 2.9% and in July it increased to 11.7%.
On the other hand, the number of companies that stated that the investment climate is favorable has decreased, given that in June it was 32.4%, in July 19.4% and in September it fell to 11%.
“It is evident the concern that companies have for the tax reform project that is being discussed, and that has the disproportionate goal of raising an additional $25 billion. This undoubtedly puts investment at risk and the possibility of companies to grow and hire staff, which is not a minor issue considering that unemployment reached 11% in July”, said Bruce Mac Master, president of Andi.
“We believe that the best tax reform for Colombia is economic growth, which has been reflected in the last year through different indicators, but we also have to be aware of the reality and that is that Colombia is not capable of absorbing a reform tax that, by far, would be the largest in the history of the country”, he added.
BRIEFCASE
