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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2013
Income Taxes [Abstract]  
Income Tax Disclosure [Text Block]
9. INCOME TAXES

 We are required to adjust our effective tax rate each quarter to estimate our annual effective tax rate. We must also record the tax impact of certain discrete, unusual or infrequently occurring items, including changes in judgment about valuation allowances and effects of changes in tax laws or rates, in the interim period in which they occur. In addition, jurisdictions with a projected loss for the year or a year-to-date loss where no tax benefit can be recognized are excluded from the estimated annual effective tax rate. The impact of such an exclusion could result in a higher or lower effective tax rate during a particular quarter, based upon the mix and timing of actual earnings versus annual projections.

Income tax expense was $6.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2013 as compared to $0.9 million in the three months ended September 30, 2012.  Our effective income tax rate was 16.1% in the third quarter of 2013 as compared to negative 12.9% in the third quarter of 2012.  

Income tax expense was $9.1 million in the first nine months of 2013 as compared to $4.8 million in the first nine months of 2012.  Our effective income tax rate was 12.3% in the first nine months of 2013 as compared to 9.3% in the first nine months of 2012

Our income tax expense and effective tax rate for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013 reflect favorable foreign tax rates, along with our inability to realize a tax benefit for current foreign losses. For the three months ended September 30, 2013, we recorded tax expense of $2.2 million relating to certain changes in estimates in a foreign jurisdiction. Additionally, in the first quarter of 2013, we recorded a tax benefit of $1.5 million relating to the release of a prior year unrecognized tax benefit due to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations and a tax benefit of $3.3 million relating to an election we made in the first nine months of 2013 regarding the treatment of foreign exchange gains and losses in a foreign jurisdiction.

In the three months ended June 30, 2013, we settled a transfer pricing examination of our 2006 income tax return with the Mexican tax authorities. This settlement resulted in a reduction of our liability for unrecognized income tax benefits and a cash payment of $4.7 million.

Our income tax expense and effective tax rate for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2012 reflect the effect of recognizing a net operating loss benefit against our taxable income in the U.S. Our income tax expense and effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 also reflect a net tax expense of $1.3 million related to the amendment of state income tax returns as a result of the settlement of federal income tax audits for the years 2004 through 2007.