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Seoul caves in to car firms’ opposition to exhaust tax
Corporate lobbying pays off as levy postponed until 2020

South Korea caved in to pressure from car industry bosses yesterday and slammed the brakes on a proposed tax on vehicle carbon emissions.

Government officials said it would delay the tax by over five years until the end of 2020 amid lobbying from domestic and US car manufacturers who feared that the levy would curb sales.

The so-called smog tax had already been postponed by more than two years when the further delay was announced.

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