Glencore "paid almost no corporation tax"

(Story updated 16:00 28/4)

SWISS MINING giant Glencore has paid almost no corporate tax for years, according to a report prepared by the banks underwriting its $60bn (£36bn) listing on the stock exchange.

The Financial Times reports that the trading business made $2.33bn before taxes and interest last year in advance of its listing. The pre-IPO research, by banks including Citigroup, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley, show that the tax charges in the trading business are borne by its employees.

Around 485 partners accumulate tax liabilities during their work career and pay them when they cash their shares at retirement as income tax.

"Under the current private structure, [the trading business of] Glencore has been largely tax free," Liam Fitzpatrick, the lead analyst for Credit Suisse, wrote in the report.

The FT says that the flotation will force Glencore to abandon its trading business tax-free status. UBS said the company's overall tax rate will jump to more than 20% this year, up from 10% in 2010.