EU countries cannot price their goods more competitively. EU businesses aren't charged VAT by the EU on goods they export because consumers pay VAT. But when th

EU countries cannot price their goods more competitively. EU businesses aren't charged VAT by the EU on goods they export because consumers pay VAT. But when they export goods to another country, tax is still paid. It is just paid by the consumer in that country, including the US. For example, if an EU business exports to NZ then they have to remit 15% GST on the goods to the NZ tax authorities. The same is true of Australia or the US or any other destination with sales tax. The US has relatively low sales taxes, so its consumers have an advantage when importing over consumers in other countries. That is a good thing for US consumers: they pay less for goods. It has nothing to do with US exporters. The US doesn't refund VAT to exporters because there is nothing to refund: they don't pay VAT on their inputs. The refund is fiscally neutral for businesses. The EU exporters that get VAT refunds aren't netting anything. They are just getting back tax they paid but never owed. US exporters don't pay any sales taxes on their inputs so they don't need refunds: they kept their money in the first place. EU countries also pay income tax. In no possible sense are EU companies advantaged by the EU being a generally higher-tax place than the US. The opposite is true: if VAT were lower, they would be more competitive domestically and would have be better resourced to invest in their processes and become more efficient and competitive.