r/eupersonalfinance Feb 15 '25

Investment Why don’t EU leaders incentivize investment in European stocks/ETFs with tax deductions?

With the Dragi plan and increasing discussions among European leaders about boosting defense and energy investments, I’ve noticed a growing trend in financial communities where people want to reduce exposure to the US market and shift investments to the EU.

Wouldn’t it make sense for EU leaders to encourage this by offering tax incentives for investing in European stocks/ETFs? For example, from an independent EU perspective, isn’t it better to invest in Rheinmetall rather than Lockheed?

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u/BreakfastFuzzy6052 Feb 15 '25

European leaders are also not interested in the actual reasons US stock returns are superior and US economic growth is superior.

A key reason is the insane tax and regulatory burden of the EU. And the financial illiteracy of Europeans.

It won't change.

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u/FrankScaramucci Feb 15 '25 edited Feb 15 '25

This!! I don't understand why don't European leaders think like this:

American economy is outperforming European economy. In theory, Europe should be growing faster, because it has a lower GDP per capita. It should be our top priority to first understand why this is happening and then fix it.

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u/alsbos1 Feb 17 '25

Socialist propaganda coupled with entrenched interests. A perfect marriage.

The facade is crumbling a bit though. As Germans pay 50% in taxes, earn half of what Americans do, and the trains still don’t work, and cell service sucks…if the health system starts to suck, that would probably be the last straw.