Ten EU states eye plan for financial trading tax

Ten eurozone countries formally agreed yesterday on some aspects of a harmonised tax on financial transactions and gave themselves until the middle of next year to reach agreement on remaining issues, including tax rates.

Ireland and the UK are staying outside the deal.

A financial-transaction tax is intended to recover some of the public money used to support banks, to curb speculative trading, and to unify the various levies already charged in several EU countries.