Colombia court strikes down ban on deducting royalties from tax income

BOGOTA (Reuters) -Colombia's Constitutional Court has struck down part of a law that prohibited extractive companies from deducting royalties paid to the government from their taxable income, benefiting businesses and dealing a blow to government finances.

The rule was included in a tax reform from the government of leftist President Gustavo Petro, which was approved by Congress and came into effect this year, as part of efforts to fund programs aimed at tackling poverty and inequality.