With regards to you thinking I am wrong, this is a matter of simple accounting: costs go up (enforced tax in this case) therefore prices MUST/WILL go up. Custo

With regards to you thinking I am wrong, this is a matter of simple accounting: costs go up (enforced tax in this case) therefore prices MUST/WILL go up. Customers will pay the tax bill. Imagine a shareholders meeting: "the government have just enforced an additional 20% tax onto us which is going to cost X Billion a year. We're going to eat that cost. Is that ok?" There's not a chance that the shareholders will accept that... prices WILL increase to cover it. Sure, they will likely squeeze suppliers and look for savings elsewhere but that will only cover some of it as I would imagine suppliers are squeezed hard as it is. So, yes, the government will likely get more tax in the short term but it won't be paid by the corporations.