Chile's Senate approves tax reform, moves closer to becoming law

Chile's President Michelle Bachelet waves as she leaves the Itamaraty Palce after the 6th BRICS summit and the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), in Brasilia July 16, 2014. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chile's Senate overwhelmingly approved modifications to President Michelle Bachelet's flagship tax reform late on Tuesday, sending it back to the lower house of Congress for discussion and bringing it one step closer to becoming law.

Last month, the Senate's five-member Finance Committee introduced changes to the reform, including increasing corporate taxes to 27 percent by 2017 from the current 20 percent. In the bill as initially presented to Congress, corporate taxes were to increase to 25 percent.