American multinationals repatriated $301 billion in foreign profits last year, the most in nearly a decade, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Earnings repatriated or allocated for such by U.S. companies in 2014 grew 7 percent compared to a year earlier, according to a report from Credit Suisse Group AG, cited by the newspaper. This is the largest amount since 2005, when American companies sent home more than $350 billion as a result of a one-time "tax holiday," that allowed them to repatriate foreign income at a hugely reduced tax rate. U.S. companies are estimated to keep a record $2.10 trillion abroad, untaxed.The stimulus behind the latest uptake remains unclear, according to the Wall Street Journal, which nevertheless added that concerns about a possible tax audit or penalty could be a motivating factor for some companies. President Barack Obama last month proposed a one-time 14 percent tax on companies' overseas earnings in a bid to fund domestic infrastructure projects.
