Tax

Biden task force lacks sense of dollars

9 Jul 2020

A wish list from the U.S. presidential candidate’s advisers runs the gamut from universal healthcare and zero emissions to racial equity and infrastructure spending, plus tax increases. Missing is much, if any, clarity on the financial equation. Trillions of dollars are at stake.

Biden policy palette would paint Wall Street blue

9 Jul 2020

Proposals from a task force working for the U.S. presidential hopeful would leave high finance worse off, from splitting up banks and raising taxes to giving Americans accounts at the Fed. They’re just ideas, but the broad outlines of a Democratic presidency are becoming clearer.

Corona Capital: A tax on martinis

24 Jun 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Uncle Sam has bad news for those enjoying the libation during lockdown as it’s putting up import duties on gin, vodka and olives.

Corona Capital: Carnival, Cheap funds, Salmon

18 Jun 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: What lies on the horizon for the cruise operator; locking in cheap financing; and a fishy tale of coronavirus-related swings in demand.

Macron’s tax-lite recovery relies on EU indulgence

15 Jun 2020

The French president has ruled out tax rises to pay for 500 bln euros of Covid-19 stimulus. That makes sense to encourage fragile consumer spending and protect jobs. It also depends on EU officials maintaining looser budget rules and the ECB keeping borrowing costs low.

Dixon: Wean firms off debt by rejigging taxes

8 Jun 2020

Excess corporate leverage makes the global economy wobbly. After the pandemic, governments should use the tax system to encourage more equity and less debt so the world can better resist future shocks. They may even be able to raise some cash to repair their own balance sheets.

Corona Capital: Tech diversity, CNN’s middle age

1 Jun 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: As big U.S. technology companies’ CEOs speak out about racial inequality, working from home trends could give them a chance to make a real difference; and 24/7 news network CNN feasts on Covid-19 as it turns 40.

Big Tech faces a post-virus global tax onslaught

28 May 2020

The OECD’s efforts to fashion a fairer global tax system are at risk of stalling. France and Britain already levy charges on the revenue of Facebook, Amazon and others. With public debt soaring and the pandemic boosting Big Tech’s sales, a messy patchwork of levies could ensue.

Texas is U.S. state cash dilemma on steroids

18 May 2020

The onetime republic has low tax rates, modest spending and a love of small government. It also has a books-balancing problem, because of its reliance on oil and sales taxes. The state may have to go hat in hand to Washington. But if Texas needs special handouts, who doesn’t?

State bailouts could use a tax transparency clause

12 May 2020

France and Denmark want to ban companies operating out of tax havens like Panama from Covid-19 help. That’s fair but may only exclude a few firms. Forcing those which tap state aid to disclose how much tax they pay in each country would offer a bigger anti-avoidance boost.

Fringe taxes will go mainstream when lockdowns end

11 May 2020

Governments are currently handing out money, but their focus will eventually shift to recouping the costs of the crisis. The target will be those who benefited most from bailouts. Expect wealth taxes, tariffs on tech firms, and levies earmarked for public health to gain new fans.

Indian tax hikes are perverse economic necessity

6 May 2020

Governments worldwide are handing out cash to prop up demand as lockdowns crush revenue. New Delhi, however, is raising taxes to contain deficits, upping levies on petrol as states slap charges on booze. India’s fiscal anxiety is acute, but others may follow after the crisis.

Orbanomics may be Hungary’s best political shield

6 Apr 2020

Covid-19 has enabled Viktor Orban to rule by decree. Busy with the virus, the EU may fail to stop abuses. But the prime minister's power grab may be limited by Hungary's economic reliance on foreign investment, which gives the like of BMW more scope to register disapproval.

Corona Capital: Uncle Sam’s penchant for boutiques

2 Apr 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout. The U.S. government has given a boost to independent investment banks by hiring Moelis. Perella Weinberg and PJT are its bailout advisers. Megabanks like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, meanwhile, are left on the shelf.

Cox: Are taxpayers ready to rescue the jerks too?

19 Mar 2020

Workers will be human shields for reckless CEOs in the crisis clamor to save jobs. Consider Penn National: The U.S. casino group gorged on debt and bought brash Barstool Sports a month ago. If capitalism had any purity, or morality, Penn would go bust. Watch it get bailed out.

Hadas: Wealth tax offers low-risk test of MMT

26 Feb 2020

Most taxes redistribute money that is already circulating in the economy, but proposed levies on capital would bring new funds into play, without increasing the fiscal deficit. If Modern Monetary Theory is right, a rush of well-spent new money would strengthen the U.S. economy.

Facebook tax fight slaps a levy on its reputation

25 Feb 2020

The social network is fighting U.S. authorities in court over a $9 bln tax bill. Its defense has merit. But for a $620 bln company to say it should pay less because its future was uncertain a decade ago defies common sense. That will only win Facebook more enemies.

India’s tax tweaks will deliver half-stimulus

29 Jan 2020

The government may implement big changes to levies on dividends and capital gains in the budget, building on cuts to corporate dues. Lower rates will please investors, but the next step is freeing officials of collection targets and creating a credible system to resolve disputes.

Investors and EU can marginalize U.S. on climate

27 Jan 2020

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says the White House might deem a European carbon tax on imports protectionist. That exposes one of the problems with regional solutions to global warming. Allying with global investors would help create more powerful sticks and carrots.

U.S.-France digital tax truce could easily unravel

23 Jan 2020

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is no longer demanding that any global Big Tech levy be optional, while Paris will delay collecting payments from groups like Google. That was the easy part. Even basics, such as how much to charge such companies, will be harder to hammer out.