A free market transaction benefits both parties; both buyer and seller feel like they are better off as a result, otherwise they would not agree to the sale. Th

A free market transaction benefits both parties; both buyer and seller feel like they are better off as a result, otherwise they would not agree to the sale. Therefore, just as the French government can say that the American company is benefiting from French citizens, so the American government can claim that the French citizens are benefiting from American companies. A tax by either government inserts friction into the transaction and makes the deal less profitable on the party or parties that pay for the tax. The French government is taxing businesses not because this is somehow morally right or efficient, but because it is easier than convincing its subjects/citizens that government services merit higher personal taxes.