(9)	Income Taxes

The Company’s effective tax rate of 16.4% is significantly lower than the U.S. statutory rate of 34% primarily due to the fact that certain current year operating losses in the U.K. have been foregone in exchange for a cash refund, and in addition the local statutory rate in certain countries in which the Company operates, notably the U.K. (20%) and Italy, (24%) is lower than the U.S. statutory rate.