By Colleen McCain Nelson
President Barack Obama will meet Tuesday with executives from 10
companies that are investing in the United States, part of a White
House push to highlight job creation and bring more investments to
the U.S.
The round-table discussion will include a mix of U.S. and
foreign-based companies that recently have announced plans to
expand their presence in the U.S., administration officials
said.
Participants in the meeting at the White House will include Ford
Motor Co. and Swedish wireless network giant Ericsson, as well as
Lufthansa Group, the largest airline group in Europe.
On Tuesday, Mr. Obama also will announce plans for a SelectUSA
summit next year in Washington, the continuation of a
three-year-old federal effort aimed at bringing job-creating
investments to the U.S. while helping companies navigate the
federal government.
In a conference call Monday with reporters, White House
officials said companies are investing billions of dollars in the
U.S., strengthening the economy and creating new jobs. Jeffrey
Zients, director of the National Economic Council, said a
productive and innovative workforce is spurring investment.
Tuesday's round table is a chance to discuss how to turn success
stories into "force multipliers," Mr. Zients said.
The White House is launching its effort to underscore growth and
job creation as polls continue to show persistent unease about the
economy. And while the president is shining a spotlight on
companies that are investing in the U.S., other corporations are
establishing legal residency overseas in an effort to avoid paying
U.S. taxes on repatriated earnings.
With hopes fading that this Congress will overhaul the corporate
tax code, some companies are pursuing the tax benefits that come
with an address abroad.
Democrats and Republicans have disagreed on how to address the
problem of U.S. corporations keeping earnings overseas. On Monday,
Jason Furman, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, said
the business tax code is broken. Changing the tax code is key to
making the U.S. a more attractive place to do business, he
said.
Write to Colleen McCain Nelson at colleen.nelson@wsj.com
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