PARIS: Tech giant Apple has filed a lawsuit against the activist group Attac after around 100 of its supporters occupied the company’s flagship store in Paris last month, protesting alleged “wide-scale tax evasion” by the firm.
An Apple spokesman told AFP on Thursday that while it respected the group’s right to expression, its recent actions had “put the security of our customers and employees at risk.”
It is seeking €3,000 euros ($3,600) from the group, whose full name is the Association for the Taxation of Financial Transactions and Aid to Citizens, and a court order barring the group from staging further protests in its stores, for which they would face a penalty of €150,000 euros.
Attac staged a sit-in at Apple’s grandiose Opera store on December 2, demanding the US technology giant pay billions of euros the EU says it owes in back taxes.
They blocked the store for several hours on a busy pre-Christmas Saturday, leaving only after they were assured of a meeting with management.
The company said it had met with representatives on December 18 and asked them to refrain from further actions because of security concerns.
“Even if we don’t share their opinion, we fully recognize their right to express it,” the Apple spokesman said.
But Dominique Plihon, a spokesman for Attac France, said the lawsuit was “an attempt to gag Attac and prevent us from holding new citizen actions to condemn tax evasion by multinationals.”
He added that Apple had accused Attac of “vandalism,” though he said the group’s actions “are symbolic, nonviolent, staged openly and with no material damage.”
Attac also protested against the company on the day Apple released its iPhone X globally in November, dumping a load of freshly picked apples as demonstrators carried signs saying “Apple, pay your taxes” in the southern city of Aix-en-Provence.
The same day, its activists gathered in front of the Opera store with a fake birthday cake, wishing “happy birthday to the iPhone” but “a bad birthday to tax evasion” as part of its #ApplePayYourTaxes campaign.
In August 2016, European authorities estimated that Apple owed $14.5 billion in back taxes after it negotiated highly favorable tax arrangements with the Irish government.
Revelations in November from the “Paradise Papers” shed light on Apple’s tax avoidance strategy, which shifted tens of billion of dollars in profits from one tax haven to another.
A trove of documents released by the US-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) suggested Apple transferred funds to the island of Jersey, which typically does not tax corporate income and is largely exempt from EU tax regulations.
Apple has said it follows the law in each country it operates.
Apple sues French tax activists over Paris store protest
Apple sues French tax activists over Paris store protest
Saudi POS spending jumps 28% in final week of Jan: SAMA
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s point-of-sale spending climbed sharply in the final week of January, rising nearly 28 percent from the previous week as consumer outlays increased across almost all sectors.
POS transactions reached SR16 billion ($4.27 billion) in the week ending Jan. 31, up 27.8 percent week on week, according to the Saudi Central Bank. Transaction volumes rose 16.5 percent to 248.8 million, reflecting stronger retail and service activity.
Spending on jewelry saw the biggest uptick at 55.5 percent to SR613.69 million, followed by laundry services which saw a 44.4 percent increase to SR62.83 million.
Expenditure on personal care rose 29.1 percent, while outlays on books and stationery increased 5.1 percent. Hotel spending climbed 7.4 percent to SR377.1 million.
Further gains were recorded across other categories. Spending in pharmacies and medical supplies rose 33.4 percent to SR259.19 million, while medical services increased 13.7 percent to SR515.44 million.
Food and beverage spending surged 38.6 percent to SR2.6 billion, accounting for the largest share of total POS value. Restaurants and cafes followed with a 20.4 percent increase to SR1.81 billion. Apparel and clothing spending rose 35.4 percent to SR1.33 billion, representing the third-largest share during the week.
The Kingdom’s key urban centers mirrored the national surge. Riyadh, which accounted for the largest share of total POS spending, saw a 22 percent rise to SR5.44 billion from SR4.46 billion the previous week. The number of transactions in the capital reached 78.6 million, up 13.8 percent week on week.
In Jeddah, transaction values increased 23.7 percent to SR2.16 billion, while Dammam reported a 22.2 percent rise to SR783.06 million.
POS data, tracked weekly by SAMA, provides an indicator of consumer spending trends and the ongoing growth of digital payments in Saudi Arabia.
The data also highlights the expanding reach of POS infrastructure, extending beyond major retail hubs to smaller cities and service sectors, supporting broader digital inclusion initiatives.
The growth of digital payment technologies aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 objectives, promoting electronic transactions and contributing to the Kingdom’s broader digital economy.
