CLibertyC

French competition watchdog raids Apple stores

"French competition authorities last week raided several stores of US tech giant Apple following a complaint by failed local firm eBizcuss of unfair trade practices, officials said Tuesday. Officials from the Autorite de la Concurrance confirmed the raids but did not say where they took place and how many outlets were affected. Apple did not comment. The Les Echos financial daily said the the investigators wanted to probe Apple’s relations with its distributors. The firm has been accused of favouring its own stores with the supply of new devices." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrench competition watchdog raids Apple stores

EBay’s double tax base prompts calls for investigation

"Britain and Germany may have missed out on a combined $1 billion in sales tax since online marketplace eBay picked a tiny Luxembourg office as its base for EU sales, a shift that lawmakers say should now be investigated. EBay, which is headquartered in San Jose, California, moved into Europe in 1999 when it established eBay International in Berne. Switzerland's low income tax regime for foreign companies was highly beneficial for the auction site. The Swiss base also meant, initially, that the company didn't have to charge EU customers VAT. But in 2003, Brussels changed the rules." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEBay’s double tax base prompts calls for investigation

France’s triumphant ‘Joan of Arc’ vows to bring back franc and destroy euro

"'We cannot be seduced,' she said, brimming with confidence after her party secured 46pc of the vote a week ago. Her candidate trounced the ruling Socialists in their own bastion of Villeneuve-sur-Lot. 'The euro ceases to exist the moment that France leaves, and that is our incredible strength. What are they going to do, send in tanks?' 'Europe is just a great bluff. One side there is the immense power of sovereign peoples, and on the other side are a few technocrats,' she said. It is her defence of the French welfare model and her critique of capitalism that gives her a Leftist hue -- some call it 1930s national socialism -- so far in outlook from Britain's UKIP." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrance’s triumphant ‘Joan of Arc’ vows to bring back franc and destroy euro

No-Income-Tax Monaco Again Threatened With ‘Tax Haven’ Blacklist Status

"Monaco, which was for a long time considered a black sheep because of its lack of transparency, is still clouded by its very attractive financial legislation. It is a haven for its inhabitants, who don’t pay income tax or inheritance tax. That is, with the notable exception of U.S. and also French nationals, as per a convention signed 50 years ago signed by General de Gaulle. Today pressure is mounting on Monaco. The world powers have launched a new war on tax evasion. During their recent Northern Ireland meeting, the members of the G8 agreed to an automatic exchange of information for tax purposes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNo-Income-Tax Monaco Again Threatened With ‘Tax Haven’ Blacklist Status

IMF Recommends Increased Taxes For No-Income-Tax Vanuatu

"Vanuatu has previously been attractive as a retirement and investment destination for Australian citizens, largely due to its lack of an income tax, but there has been enhanced oversight in recent times by the Australian Tax Office of Australian citizens' financial assets in Vanuatu. In that scenario, the IMF now proposes that an income tax could now be imposed, as it has been in other Pacific islands. Vanuatu's domestic revenue, at 18.5 percent of GDP, is low relative to its Pacific island peers, suggesting scope to increase revenue. It is forecast that an income tax, levied on both employees and employers, could yield between 3 and 4 percent of GDP at modest tax rates." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIMF Recommends Increased Taxes For No-Income-Tax Vanuatu

Russia and China building their gold reserves

"The People’s Bank of China recently let overnight money-market rates soar to over 20%. The message is clear for those prepared to look for it: they are not going to fuel an extended credit bubble. The two countries have learned how damaging a bank-credit-fuelled business cycle can be, and are determined to restrict bank lending. Western commentators find this hard to understand because it does not conform to the way western monetary policy works. It seems that the leaders of both Russia and China are also painfully aware of the importance of currency stability in a way the West is not." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRussia and China building their gold reserves

Shanghai Futures Exchange To Begin Gold/Silver Night Trading

"'The U.S. and Europe still have the pricing power, although prices are usually being affected by a number of factors, such as liquidity and overall economic conditions,' said Yang Maijun, chairman of the Board at the Shanghai Futures Exchange, which is going to start night trading hours for its gold and silver contracts on July 5. 'The purpose of night trading is to help prices [on the Shanghai exchange] better connect with global prices, and to help achieve our goal of internationalizing our contracts,' Mr. Yang told the audience at the Lujiazui Forum, an annual gathering of financial policy makers and executives in Shanghai." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShanghai Futures Exchange To Begin Gold/Silver Night Trading

JPMorgan Comes Out With First “Overweight” Call On Commodities Since September 2010

"Metals prices have reached levels that are demonstrably forcing involuntary production cuts and fresh demand. Against one-sided sentiment and following 15 months of destocking, Chinese buyers are going to realize very soon this is the opportune moment to back up the truck and to restock supply channels where China is import dependent. A surge in Chinese buying of a metal at a lower price has already been observed in gold. We expect renewed vigor in imports of copper and oil. It is quite obvious what the Chinese should do here in physical markets, in pursuit of China’s long-run economic and social self-interest." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJPMorgan Comes Out With First “Overweight” Call On Commodities Since September 2010

Thin Wire – Hawala

"With the ingenious method of hawala, money moved time zones and continents via a single communication between two hawaladars or thadekars (hawala agents): a promise that the cash had been deposited on one end, and thus could be withdrawn from the other. So long as cash trades at either end were relatively balanced, the system worked—so well that hawala remained the mainstay of monetary trade in more than 50 countries until the early 20th century. Fast-forward a few hundred years, and hawala has a less celebrated reputation. But for families in developing countries supported by diaspora relatives, hawala is a lifeline." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThin Wire – Hawala

U.S. Helping Iranians With Surveillance Circumvention Technologies

"While Americans are making a big deal that the NSA is spying on everyone, Obama comes out and fervently defends the practice. NSA spying on you is the good kind. The 'bad' surveillance happens over in Iran. So what else for the U.S. government to do than supply Iranian citizens with surveillance circumvention technologies! Bloomberg reports: 'The U.S. State Department is helping develop a number of general-use surveillance circumvention technologies,' Sascha Meinrath, founder of the Commotion Wireless Project, a non-profit group trying to build such devices, said in an email.' The irony is so thick, you can barely see!" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Helping Iranians With Surveillance Circumvention Technologies