Income Taxes

At the end of each interim reporting period, the Company makes an estimate of the annual effective income tax rate. Tax items included in the annual effective income tax rate are pro-rated for the full year and tax items discrete to a specific quarter are included in the effective income tax rate for that quarter. The estimate used in providing for income taxes on a year-to-date basis may change in subsequent interim periods.

The following table provides details of income taxes:



	Three Months Ended
	April 4, 2015			March 29, 2014
Earnings before income taxes	$	128		$	89
Income tax expense	40			4
Effective tax rate	31		%	4		%

The Company recorded $40 million of net income tax expense in the first quarter of 2015, resulting in an effective tax rate of 31%, compared to $4 million of net tax expense, resulting in an effective tax rate of 4% in the first quarter of 2014. The effective tax rate in 2015 was lower than the U.S. statutory tax rate of 35% primarily due to the U.S. domestic production tax deduction and rate differential for foreign affiliates. The effective tax rate in the first quarter of 2014 was lower than the U.S. statutory tax rate of 35% due to a $30 million net tax benefit associated with the net reduction in unrecognized tax benefits for facts that indicated the extent to which certain tax positions were more-likely-than-not of being sustained.