IMF Lauds Efforts to Slash Government Energy Subsidies; Supports Global CO2 Tax

摘要

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on March 27 unveiled a report lauding recent efforts by some national governments to cut energy subsidies – and urged more such actions by governments around the world. Because the United States lacks a carbon tax and because it currently consumes more petroleum fuels than any other country – although China is on-course to overtake the U.S. in a few years – the IMF report willy-nilly ranks the U.S. as the worst “subsidizer” of energy today, followed by China and Russia. Rationale: the IMF report argues that a carbon-dioxide (CO2) tax ought to be imposed globally, by at least US$25/ton.