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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Oct. 03, 2015
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes

Our effective tax rate for the thirteen weeks ended October 3, 2015 was 27.4% compared to 29.8% for the thirteen weeks ended September 27, 2014. For the thirty-nine weeks ended October 3, 2015 and September 27, 2014, our effective tax rate was 41.5% and 34.0%, respectively. Under U.S. accounting rules for income taxes, quarterly effective tax rates may vary significantly depending on the actual operating results in the various tax jurisdictions, as well as changes in the valuation allowance related to the expected recovery of deferred tax assets.
The thirteen weeks ended October 3, 2015 included net discrete benefits of approximately $1,945, or 2.2 percentage points of the effective tax rate, primarily related to the release of unrealized tax benefits due to expiration of statute of limitations in various jurisdictions. The thirteen weeks ended September 27, 2014 included net discrete benefits of approximately $6,618, or 6.4 percentage points of the effective tax rate, primarily driven by the release of unrealized tax benefits due to the expiration of statute of limitations in various jurisdictions.
The thirty-nine weeks ended October 3, 2015 included net discrete expenses of approximately $9,580, or 7.6 percentage points of the effective tax rate, primarily related to discrete expense of $14,580 due to an increase to the valuation allowance on foreign tax credits, partially offset by net discrete benefit of $5,000 primarily driven by the release of unrealized tax benefits due to the expiration of statute of limitations in various jurisdictions. The thirty-nine weeks ended September 27, 2014 included net discrete benefits of approximately $9,143, or 4.1 percentage points of the effective tax rate, which includes the discrete items noted above for the thirteen weeks ended September 27, 2014, as well as $2,525 of net discrete benefits primarily related to positive adjustments to certain deferred tax benefits.
Our effective tax rate differed from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 35% during these periods primarily due to the items noted above, as well as the relative mix of earnings or losses within the tax jurisdictions in which we operate, such as: (a) earnings in lower-tax jurisdictions for which no U.S. taxes have been provided because such earnings are planned to be reinvested indefinitely outside the United States; (b) losses in certain jurisdictions in which we are not able to record a tax benefit; and (c) changes in the valuation allowance on deferred tax assets.
At October 3, 2015, we had gross unrecognized tax benefits of $24,107 compared to $30,372 at January 3, 2015, representing a net decrease of $6,265 during the thirty-nine weeks ended October 3, 2015. Substantially all of the gross unrecognized tax benefits, if recognized, would impact our effective tax rate in the period of recognition.
We recognize interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense. In addition to the gross unrecognized tax benefits identified above, the interest and penalties recorded to date by us totaled $6,841 and $7,625 at October 3, 2015 and January 3, 2015, respectively.
Our future effective tax rate will continue to be affected by changes in the relative mix of taxable income and losses in the tax jurisdictions in which we operate, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets, or changes in tax laws or interpretations thereof. In addition, our income tax returns are subject to continuous examination by the IRS and other tax authorities. The IRS has concluded its examinations of tax years prior to 2012. It is possible that within the next twelve months, ongoing tax examinations in the United States and several of our foreign jurisdictions may be resolved, that new tax exams may commence and that other issues may be effectively settled. However, we do not expect our assessment of unrecognized tax benefits to change significantly over that time.