Worldwide Financial Planning

The US government is taking a 15% cut of the revenues from Nvidia and AMD’s chip sales to China. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also floated the idea of expanding this “revenue sharing” model to other goods. If markets are at record highs with sky-high import tariffs why not try export taxes? That may be the logic but there are godfather vibes here.

I'm disappointed…in a ‘seriously-you-thought-this-was-OK’ sort of way. The Treasury has decided to go ahead with the ‘pull a rabbit from the hat’ for April 2027. Not a fluffy nice bunny type. More like a fatal attraction style.

Tariffs are clearly having an effect. The US is raking in far more customs revenue than it was just a few months ago, and companies, which this week include Caterpillar and Toyota, have warned of the cost of dealing with them.

This isn’t just about tax. It’s about keeping more of what you’ve worked for in the hands of the people you love, rather than writing a cheque to HMRC because of missing paperwork or missed opportunities.

Markets initially welcomed the EU/US deal but enthusiasm was short-lived as the latest agreements – like the other deals already signed – lack substance and leave a considerable amount of detail to be agreed. Meanwhile, companies including Games Warehouse in the UK, Ford in the US and Adidas in Germany have added to warnings about the financial cost of high US tariffs.

It's not too often we wake up thinking 'today’s a belting day to plan my death duties'. Yet every year, families are blindsided by the bureaucratic mess and tax bill which can follow a loved one’s passing on top of the trauma of loss.