Trump promises ‘phenomenal’ tax announcement in as soon as two weeks

Donald Trump said the administration plans to make a corporate tax announcement over the next two to three weeks, a move that has been eagerly-awaited by Wall Street.

The US president said during a meeting with US airline executives that the policies would seek to roll back “burdensome regulations”, while “lowering the overall tax burden of American businesses.”

Mr Trump said that the scheme would be “phenomenal in terms of tax”.

US airlines have seen their shares climb this morning as their executives huddled with Mr Trump. Delta shares are up 2.3 per cent, Southwest Airlines gained 2.9 per cent and United Continental increased 2.1 per cent.

Expectations that the property developer cum politician will cut the US corporate tax rate — currently at 35 per cent, among the highest across developed countries — has been one factor in the post-election rally that has sent US stock prices to record highs and driven Treasuries lower.

News that more details on the plan may be on the horizon helped accelerate gains in US stocks, with the S&P 500 index recently trading higher for the day by 0.4 per cent. The dollar climbed to a session high, up by as much as 0.3 per cent against the currencies of six trading partners.

Meanwhile, US Treasury yields rose in the opposite direction of prices. The 10-year yield recently advanced by 4 basis points to 2.38 per cent.

While the news from the White House on Thursday was greeted with optimism, executives of large US companies have recently struck a cautious note on tax policies, with many taking a wait-and-see attitude.

Additionally, any major overhaul would also require the support of Congress.