The great interest rate rip off part 1

[interestrateripoff]

Canada's sub-prime mortgage time bomb | rabble.ca

 

What do the mid-recession housing boom and the Harper Conservatives’ rise in the polls have in common? Answer: the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s massive sub-prime mortgage scheme that is keeping up the appearance of an economic recovery.

 

Reading the newspapers these days you have to wonder whether Canada was on another planet when the global credit crisis hit. House prices have actually increased in some provinces and now there is a shortage of houses for sale in southern Ontario. Credit is flowing everywhere.

 

Ottawa: The biggest sub-prime lender in the world

 

But what few Canadians realize is that the housing market has avoided collapse (prices are down 32 per cent in the U.S.) because the Harper Conservatives directed the CMHC to change the mortgage rules to effectively make the Canadian government the biggest sub-prime lender in the world. What’s almost as alarming as this reckless policy is that no one in the financial media is talking about it, even though everyone knows the facts. I was alerted to the scandal by David Lepoidevin, a financial advisor with National Bank Financial, in a warning letter to his clients. (Blogger Jonathon Tonge has all the CMHC charts and graphs on his blog.)

 

The facts are that over 90 per cent of existing mortgages in Canada are “securitized” -- that’s the practice of pooling mortgages (or other assets) and then issuing new securities backed by the pool -- MBSs, or Mortgage Backed Securities. That’s what happened with the sub-prime mortgages in the U.S. which (because the whole pool was so diversified) received triple A ratings by the rating agencies. Losses around the world amounted to hundred of billions of dollars.

 

Credit is still tight in the U.S. because no private investor has the stomach for such risky MBSs. That’s because those losses were private and not back-stopped by any government. In Canada, mortgages have been securitized for years. The Canadian-issued securitizations are called National Housing Act, Mortgage-Backed Securities. Unlike the failed U.S. pools, says Lepoidevin, “In order to find buyers for securitized mortgage pools, the Government of Canada has put guarantees on them” by directing CMHC to guarantee all Canadian mortgages.

 

Debt it wealth, nothing can go wrong.

[interestrateripoff]

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: One in Four Children on Food Stamps, One in Eight Overall; Weekly Unemployment Claims Tick Up

 

Every month the number on food stamps increases. Food stamp usage is now up to a record 36 million. Please consider Food Stamp Use Soars, and Stigma Fades

With food stamp use at record highs and climbing every month, a program once scorned as a failed welfare scheme now helps feed one in eight Americans and one in four children.

 

While the numbers have soared during the recession, the path was cleared in better times when the Bush administration led a campaign to erase the program’s stigma, calling food stamps “nutritional aid” instead of welfare, and made it easier to apply.

 

There are 239 counties in the United States where at least a quarter of the population receives food stamps, according to an analysis of local data collected by The New York Times.

 

The counties are as big as the Bronx and Philadelphia and as small as Owsley County in Kentucky, a patch of Appalachian distress where half of the 4,600 residents receive food stamps.

 

In more than 750 counties, the program helps feed one in three blacks. In more than 800 counties, it helps feed one in three children. In the Mississippi River cities of St. Louis, Memphis and New Orleans, half of the children or more receive food stamps. Even in Peoria, Ill. — Everytown, U.S.A. — nearly 40 percent of children receive aid.

 

Although the program is growing at a record rate, the federal official who oversees it would like it to grow even faster.

“I think the response of the program has been tremendous,” said Kevin Concannon, an under secretary of agriculture, “but we’re mindful that there are another 15, 16 million who could benefit.”

 

“Some people like to camouflage this by calling it a nutrition program, but it’s really not different from cash welfare,” said Robert Rector of the Heritage Foundation, whose views have a following among conservatives on Capitol Hill. “Food stamps is quasi money.”

 

Arguing that aid discourages work and marriage, Mr. Rector said food stamps should contain work requirements as strict as those placed on cash assistance. “The food stamp program is a fossil that repeats all the errors of the war on poverty,” he said.

Use among children is especially high. A third of the children in Louisiana, Missouri and Tennessee receive food aid. In the Bronx, the rate is 46 percent. In East Carroll Parish, La., three-quarters of the children receive food stamps.

 

It's the food stamp recovery.

 

Thankfully Wall Street isn't worried by this, food stamps for all. If you can control the food you'll control the people.

[interestrateripoff]

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: Stimulus Checkup - 100 Ridiculous Projects Funded by the American Recovery Act

 

As this and the last report, 100 Stimulus Projects: A Second Opinion, suggests billions of dollars of stimulus funding have been wasted, mismanaged, or directed towards silly and shortsighted projects. Many projects may not produce the types of jobs that most Americans had hoped for or expected.

 

1. “Almost Empty” Mall Awarded Energy Grant ($5 million)

The Department of Energy has announced an award for up to $5 million6 to install a geothermal energy system capable of heating an ―almost empty‖ mall in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

 

2. Renovations for Federal Building as Expensive as New Building ($133 million)

Taxpayers in Oregon may be surprised to learn that the largest stimulus project in their state is not a new road or bridge, but a $133 million makeover for the federal building in downtown Portland. The money will go toward ―greening the Edith Green/Wendell Wyatt Federal Building in the hope of making it a model for energy efficient government offices in the Northwest. That said, for $133 million some may wonder why they did not simply tear it down and start over.

 

Agency officials expect to construct a type of vegetative skin—made of plants—on the exterior of the building, to help with heating and cooling costs.

 

In 2007, a new federal building was constructed in downtown San Francisco with similar state-of-the-art energy efficiency features for $144 million—nearly the same cost to merely renovate the Portland Federal Building. Both buildings are eighteen stories tall, built with energy efficient technologies, and house federal agency offices. The major difference is that the San Francisco building is much larger, with an additional 100,000 usable square feet in comparison with its counterpart in Portland.

 

3. DTV Advertising Agency Generates Three Jobs ($5.9 million)

An advertising agency that ultimately reported little job creation received a multi-million dollar contract to help the government overcome a poorly managed transition to digital television, only to report three jobs created.

 

4. Research to Develop Supersonic Corporate Jets ($4.7 Million)

Lockheed Martin will receive a total of more than $21 million in federal money—with $4.7 million funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act—from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to advance research for supersonic jet travel. High ticket costs, fuel-guzzling and the infamous sonic ―boom helped doom commercial supersonic travel in the past; the last Concorde jet flew in 2003.

 

5. Water Pipeline to a Money-Losing Golf Course ($2.2 million)

A $2.2 million stimulus grant will help pay for new pipes to pump recycled water to the Sharp Park Golf Course in San Francisco, California. Unfortunately, the golf course may not exist for much longer. The City Council is considering closing the public course over concerns for the California red-legged frog and the San Francisco garter snake that live in the area.

 

7. Program to Control Home Appliances From a Remote Location ($787,250)

Fifty homes on Martha‘s Vineyard in Massachusetts will participate in a test program to allow an outside party to control their energy use, ―Big Brother style. The initiative will allow participating households to purchase discounted appliances from General Electric (GE) that are capable of communicating with – and being controlled by – an off-site computer system.

 

20. Repaved Georgia Road . . . Getting Repaved Again ($88,000)

Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) contractors are using stimulus funds to repave a busy street in Atlanta—part of which was repaved just two years ago. Rebecca Serna, a local bicyclist, noted that the existing road is ―pretty much the smoothest ride in town right now, adding about the new project, ―I don‘t know if it‘s necessary, but it‘s nice.

 

23. Studying the Icelandic Arctic Environment in the Viking Age ($94,902)

The University of Massachusetts-Boston received an almost $95,000 stimulus grant to ―count pollen grains collected from farms in Iceland and allowed researchers to continue studying the role the arctic environment played in the evolution of civic life during the Viking Age.

 

33. Study on "Hookup" Behavior of Female College Coeds ($219,000)

The National Institute of Health (NIH) is using stimulus funds to pay for a year-long $219,000 study to follow female college students for a year to determine whether young women are more likely to ―hookup — the college equivalent of casual sex — after drinking

 

35. Study of Wildflowers in a Ghost Town ($448,995)

A few dilapidated buildings are largely what remains in Gothic, Colorado, a ghost town that is also home to the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. Over the next five years, however, Gothic will host a $448,995 National Science Foundation study by Dr. David Inouye on the impact of climate change on the town‘s wildflowers.

 

38. Recovering Crab Pots Lost At Sea ($700,000)

A $700,000 grant will pay for 48 people to help Oregon crabbers recover crab pots they have lost at sea. The two-year project expects to yield 2,000 lost pots a year. Oregon crabbers reportedly lose an estimated 15,000 crab pots a year. The effort will use 10 boats, planes, and a telephone hotline for people to phone in crab pot sightings. If all 4,000 pots are recovered as expected, the grantees will spend an average of $175 per crab pot, though John‘s Sporting Goods in nearby Everett, Washington sells new crab pots online for as little as $19.95.

 

An excellent use of taxpayer cash helping to create sustainable long term growth.

 

Full list of investments here

[interestrateripoff]

No cash bonuses for top Goldman staff

 

The US investment bank Goldman Sachs says its 30 top managers will receive no cash bonuses this year.

 

• £2,400: the bill every family will pay
  
• Gilts slip as fears of credit downgrade for UK grow
  
• Shell wins historic Iraq oil contract
  
• Oil prices sends manufacturing costs up
  
• Britons may be £1.45trn in debt but they are worth £9trn, says ONS study
  
• Royal Mail posts profits rise but pension plan still to be delivered
  
• Sports Direct bets on World Cup boost for sale of England shirts
  

 

David Prosser: Demanding more flesh from banks

 

Outlook If bankers thought that one of the few positive effects of the new tax charges on bonuses might be that it would mark an end to open season on their kind, it did not take long for them to be disappointed. While readers of most newspapers woke up yesterday to stories about that new levy, The Wall Street Journal had an additional little treat for banking folk: an editorial jointly penned by Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy that effectively relaunched the campaign for a new global tax on financial transactions.

 

 

• Hamish McRae: Tories have chance to make history
  
• David Prosser: Cuts, cuts and more cuts
  
• James Thompson: After festive cheer, retailing faces a hard slog in 2010
  
• David Prosser: Why Darling may not be able to deliver
  
• David Prosser: Judgement day deferred once more
  

 

Rich, poor, or in between? How you will be affected

 

Depending on your class, the pre-Budget report was a bonus or a blow. Julian Knight sorts the winners from the losers

 

 

• Steve Forbes: The agitator working to deliver Forbes to the fourth generation
  
• So what should Darling do today?
  
• The First Decade: Boom, bust and beyond
  
• Eight ways bankers can beat the Revenue
  
• Bonus culture: for and aganist the proposed tax
  
• Nokia hit by an Apple crunch
  

Housing minister says homeownership dream may be over | News | Money Marketing

[interestrateripoff]

Breaking news:

 

• US STOCKS-Dow, S&P up on retail, consumer data; Nasdaq lags - Reuters
  
• Apple, Nokia clash for lengthy court battle - Reuters
  
• Oil drops below $70 on stronger dollar - Reuters
  
• Reuters Summit-ANALYSIS-Sovereign debt seen as biggest threat - Reuters
  
• Verizon CEO says no need to buy DIRECTV - Reuters
  
• SocGen sees commodity appetite waning at end 2010 - Reuters
  
• US dollar hits 2-month peak vs euro on strong data - Reuters
  
• Party's over-US airlines weed out low 'junk' fares - Reuters
  
• Chinese daring wins another chunk of Iraq oil - Reuters
  
• Poland to approve fiscal tightening plan in Jan-source - Reuters
  

 

 

 

• ECB chief warns against 'self-serving' bonus culture
   
   
  Jean-Claude Trichet says excessive financial rewards encouraged 'self-referential' banking
   
  
  • Goldman retreats over bonuses
    
  • Dan Roberts: Where Brown leads, Goldman follows
    
  • FSA's bank tests just got more stressful
    

   

  [*] Brown and Sarkozy move to fund climate aid with global banking tax

   

   

  Funding through international levy on financial transactions removes major obstacle in talks, says UN climate chief. By Ian Traynor 57 comments

   

  • France and Germany back UK bonus tax
    

   

  [*] Britain's top credit rating safe for now, Moody's says

   

   

  Pound makes its biggest gains this week as Moody's says Britain's and US's top credit ratings are not under immediate threat 16 comments

   

  • Bond prices fall on UK credit rating fears
    

   

  [*] Shell and Petronas win Iraq oil rights

   

   

  Up to 40 oil companies defied lethal attacks on government targets in Baghdad to bid for partnerships with the Iraqi government

   

 

 

• Christmas cards
   
  Kipper Williams
   
  Six festive cards illustrated by Guardian cartoonist Kipper Williams that you can print out and send to friends and family
  
  
• Mouchel downs tools in Dubai as it pursues £10m of debt
   
   
  The British infrastructure company is another creditor of Dubai World
   
  
• 3D renaissance brings £1bn boomtime
   
   
  With the release of James Cameron's Avatar, UK cinema box office receipts are set for a record year
   
  
  • Avatar review: 'James Cameron just got slack'
    
  • Top grossing UK 3D film releases
    

   

 

 

• More business news
   
   
  
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  • Investor concerns delay Gartmore sale
     
     
     
    

[interestrateripoff]

UK credit rating threat as Cabinet row emerges

 

PM forced to deny a rift with Chancellor after it emerged that he overruled Darling's plan for stricter measures to cut deficit 106 Comments

 

• ANALYSIS: Rising gilt prices show investors' fears
  

 

• Strike threats loom over civil service cuts
  

 

Airbus A400M finally takes off

 

After two years of delays, the military transport plane today embarked on a test flight from Seville, Spain 3 Comments

 

• Airbus slows down A400M transport production
  

 

• EADS to audit A400M plan but denies delay
  

 

Waterstone's drags HMV to first-half loss

 

The music, DVDs and books retailer loses £24.9 million, but insists that it is well prepared for Christmas 7 Comments

 

• Mama — HMV is making eyes at it
  

 

• HMV unveils boutique cinema to boost DVD sales
  

 

Springer publishing group sold for €100m

 

World's second-biggest science and business publisher, laden with €2.2 billion of debt, is sold by Candover and Cinven 2 Comments

 

• Candover and Cinven: private equity feels the pain
  

 

• £4m carrot for Candover boss Malcolm Fallen
  

 

 

Standard Chartered overhauls board

 

International bank hires three independent directors and splits audit and risk committees for good governance

 

Factory gate prices jump ahead

 

Rising oil prices prompt raw materials costs for British factories to rise at fastest annual pace in a year

 

 

Gilts fall over fears for public debt outlook

 

Investor sentiment turns sour amid mounting concern that Britain’s AAA credit rating faces being downgraded

 

• Rough Budget causes morning-after gilt trip
  

 

• Little to ease doubts on triple-A credit rating
  

NS&I pulls popular fixed-rate bonds

 

State's savings institution withdraws last of its fixed-rate bond deals less than two months after their introduction

 

• NS&I pulls leading bonds after rivals cry foul
  

 

• Fixed-rate bonds bonanza for savers
  

Royal Mail to report record pension deficit

 

Adam Crozier says deficit likely to be £10 billion, a figure described by the Communications Workers Union as ‘daunting’

 

 

US retail sales boom in November

 

Rise at nearly double the rate expected by economists gives a welcome boost to the fragile economic recovery

 

 

Bonanza for Indian matriarch in £1.3bn float

 

Jindal Power, the power company controlled by Savitri Jindal, seeks approval for India's largest share listing in two years

 

• Barclays falls foul of Indian regulator
  

 

• India's Bajaj scraps Vespa-inspired scooters
  

Goldman grandees forgo cash for paper bonuses

 

Lloyd Blankfein and 29 executives will receive their chunk of estimated $22 billion bonus pool in shares

 

• Tax on bankers’ bonus ‘would infringe human rights’
  

 

• EU nations get behind super-tax on bonuses
  

Ex-IBM VP asks court to dismiss Galleon charges

 

Robert Moffat, former senior vice president at IBM, is facing insider dealing charges in the Galleon case

 

 

Greece vows to ‘clean up’ its debt mountain

 

 

Rough Budget causes morning-after gilt trip

 

The markets decided that, whatever the political considerations, the Chancellor jolly well should have done something

 

We need bankers more than they need us

 

The Government’s war on the financial industry will cost Britain dearly in jobs and tax, and picks on the wrong target

[interestrateripoff]

[/url]

 

Brown: support for global bank tax is growing

 

Gordon Brown tries to revive the idea of a tax that has been dismissed by the US government.

Bonus tax sends out global tremors

 

 

The Tobin Tax - a brief history

 

 

 

Shoppers will put £23bn on debit cards this Christmas

 

Amount is up 4pc on last year, as consumers make the most of low interest rates and increased household budgets, according to Barclays.

 

Coca-Cola warns green taxes could cut its profits by 50pc

 

 

 

 

McDonald's launches $1 breakfast

 

 

 

 

OECD predicts UK expansion for second month in a row

 

 

 

 

Airbus A400M finally flies for first time

 

 

 

 

Gartmore forced to slash IPO price by a quarter

 

 

 

• You'd think we want to drive bankers away
  

 

• GM: one of the most talked about companies should speak up
  

 

 

• Pre-Budget report: the true cost of the debt disaster
  

 

UK manufacturers' input costs rise at fastest pace in a year

 

 

 

EU presses IMF to consider Tobin tax

 

 

 

 

Pre-Budget report jitters lead to gilt sell-off

[interestrateripoff]

Apple and Nokia's battle hots up

The legal battle between Nokia and Apple takes a new turn, with Apple countersuing Nokia for alleged patent violations.

Nokia sues Apple over iPhone

Nokia in loss after poor sales

Apple profits up on iPhone sales

US extends executive pay limits

 

The White House "pay czar" extends the limits on executive pay at four US firms who were given government bailout money.

 

Brown denies over-ruling Darling

 

Gordon Brown says it is "completely wrong" to suggest he over-ruled Chancellor Alistair Darling on spending cuts

 

 

OTHER TOP BUSINESS STORIES

HMV sees gains from fewer rivals

 

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Men guilty of share-selling fraud

 

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Shell wins Iraq oil field rights

 

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UK factory input prices increase

 

China recovery gathers strength

 

Wendy's burgers to exit Japan

 

No cash bonuses at Goldman

 

Oil price drops to two-month low

 

UK and France 'agree on banking'

 

YOUR MONEY

Alert over pension move 'tricks'

 

Household wealth hits £9 trillion

 

Mortgage lending's 22-month high

 

ECONOMY

Public sector cuts 'total £36bn'

 

Greece's debt hits 300bn euros

 

Surprise as US trade gap shrinks

 

COMPANIES

Royal Mail operating profit up 4%

 

Bratz dolls to remain on shelves

 

Sports Direct increases forecast

[interestrateripoff]

Unused phone lines to be taxed for rural broadband ? The Register

 

Unused landlines will be taxed under government plans to subsidise rural broadband, and VAT will be charged on the new 50p per month tax.

"The duty will be payable on all local loops that are made available for use by an owner whether or not the lines are actually used," the Treasury said today.

 

"It will also be payable on all local loops regardless of whether the loop consists of a copper pair, a co-axial cable or a fibre connection."

 

 

So they are putting VAT onto a tax!!!!

 

This is desperate and insane.

 

I suggest they go for VAT on VAT, just think about that infinite loop.

 

We could have VAT on income tax, VAT on alcohol tax, VAT on petrol tax.

 

The list is endless.

[WebFerret]

 

So they are putting VAT onto a tax!!!!

 

This is desperate and insane.

 

I suggest they go for VAT on VAT, just think about that infinite loop.

 

We could have VAT on income tax, VAT on alcohol tax, VAT on petrol tax.

 

The list is endless.

 

I thought they already charged VAT on 'fuel duty' which is technically illegal, but the government seem to have got away with it for many years now!

 

 

On a tangible note:

 

For an insight into the 'intelligence' of today's 'Joe public' with regard to the current financial crisis check out this YouTube video - it's unbelievable and at the same time alarming but explains how the Fed get away with soooooooooo much

 

People sign petition calling for 100% inflation

http://faustiesblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/people-sign-petition-calling-for-100.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FWoLA+%28Fausty%27s+Libertarian+Blog%29

Education, education, education - where has it gone?

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/12/business/economy/12charts.html?ref=business

 

AMERICAN consumers owe less now than they did a year ago. Before the current financial crisis, that would have been unthinkable.

 

Figures released this week by the Federal Reserve showed that Americans owed $10.8 trillion on home mortgages at the end of the third quarter, down 2.2 percent from a year earlier and the lowest level since mid-2007.

Similarly, the Fed said that outstanding credit card bills in October totaled $888 billion, down 8.5 percent from a year earlier. That number was the lowest since March 2007.

 

Those trends do not, however, necessarily indicate that Americans have paid down their debts and are starting to lead the more frugal lives that some financial planners have been recommending for years. There has undoubtedly been some of that, but the declines also indicate that banks have been forced to write off a lot of bad debts and have grown more stingy in granting credit.

 

As can be seen from the accompanying charts, banks’ credit card write-offs have soared, to an annual rate of 10.2 percent in the third quarter of this year.

 

And the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that at the end of the third quarter, 4.5 percent of all mortgages were in foreclosure — one in 22 mortgages. It said another 6.1 percent — one in 16 — were at least two months overdue. Those figures are for all mortgages, not just subprime ones.

 

The extent to which Americans are really cutting back may become clearer this holiday shopping season, when they decide how much money to spend. If what they tell pollsters can be trusted, they are going to cut back.

 

A poll of 7,500 Americans in November, conducted for Alix Partners, a business consulting firm, found that people expected to save 15 percent of their income when the recession ended. That is about three times the current savings rate, as reflected in government figures. Asked what their largest personal financial concern was, 18 percent cited lowering their debt, more than any other choice.

 

Spending for some people will be down simply because they now have less credit available. As a group, Americans still have access to trillions of dollars, but the numbers have declined as banks have reduced or eliminated credit lines to many customers.

 

Banks, as a group, reported $3.4 trillion in unused credit card lines at the end of September, according to a compilation by Foresight Analytics of bank reports to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. That was down 28 percent from the peak of $4.7 billion reached in mid-2008.

 

The banks reported that outstanding home equity loans were down only 1 percent from the peak, to $667 billion. But unused home equity lines of credit came to $539 billion, the lowest since 2005 and down 25 percent from the peak reached at the end of 2007.

 

 

The distressed graph looks like a cliff face, still at least we are in recovery.

 

Thank god the US govt is making up for the loss of consumer credit!

[interestrateripoff]

I thought they already charged VAT on 'fuel duty' which is technically illegal, but the government seem to have got away with it for many years now!

 

Didn't know they where already doing it, how long has this been going on for? Wouldn't that imply everyone is due a tax refund?

 

It just goes to show how much money govts have been wasting.

 

Aggregate demand is going to take a huge hit.

[interestrateripoff]

Industrial demand for electricity is still falling - Times Online

 

Industrial demand for electricity is continuing to plunge in Britain, despite signs of an upturn in the nation’s economic fortunes, according to new government figures.

Sales of electricity to factories, mines and other manufacturing sites fell by 11.3 per cent to 22.3 terawatt hours in the three months to September 30, down from 25.05 terawatt hours in the same period last year.

Jeremy Nicholson, spokesman for the Energy Intensive Users Group, said that the bulk of the decline was attributable to a “savage contraction” in British industrial activity.

Nick Campbell, an energy analyst at Inenco, said that the fall in demand was chiefly the result of continued closures of big manufacturing plants.

 

Remember in a banana republic go on energy consumption to see how the economy is fairing especially when the govt figures are manipulated.

[WebFerret]

Didn't know they where already doing it, how long has this been going on for? Wouldn't that imply everyone is due a tax refund?

 

Thursday 26 February 2009 this Government responded to a petition raised on the subject:

http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page18414

“We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to stop charging VAT on Fuel Duty.”

Details of Petition:

“Currently, between 50% and 60% of the nett price of fuel is Fuel Duty. VAT is added on top of this which automatically increases the Fuel Duty by 17.5% - i.e.,

there is a tax levied on the tax

. As far as I can tell, VAT is a tax levied on the difference between a commodity’s price before taxes and its cost of production. It therefore seems to me that VAT on fuel should be charged just on the price BEFORE Fuel Duty is added.

I call upon the Prime Minister to correct this

injustice

and stop this Double Taxation

.”

Read the Government’s response:

It is a long established and comprehensively applied principle that VAT is due on the total amount payable for goods and services inclusive of any charges, such as excise duty. This is laid down in the basic VAT rules that apply throughout the European Union.

The legal provision for this rule can be found in Article 78 of the Principal EC VAT Directive, which states that, for the purposes of calculating the VAT due on goods and services, the taxable amount shall include taxes, duties “, levies and charges, excluding the value added tax itself”.

The Government cannot, therefore, exclude excise duty from the value on which VAT is charged on fuel.

In 2008, faced with the unusually difficult conditions created by surging global commodity prices - including crude oil prices, which nearly doubled in the 12 months to July 2008, when they reached a real-terms record high of $146 per barrel - the Government responded by postponing the 2 pence per litre increase in main fuel duty that was expected to take place on 1 October 2008. This decision helped businesses and families across the UK cope with record high fuel prices over the summer.

After the summer, however, crude oil prices fell by more than 60%, while both petrol and diesel prices at the pump dropped by more than 20 pence per litre, bringing the average retail petrol price down below £1 per litre for a number of weeks. Petrol and diesel prices continue to fall. In these circumstances, it is right for the Government to return to its long-term policy of increasing fuel duty rates each year, and so at the Pre-Budget Report the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that on 1 December 2008 fuel duty would increase by 2 pence per litre, to 52.35 pence per litre. This increase will continue to support the Government’s long-term environmental objectives while also protecting the revenues required to fund essential public services.

At the same time, however, the Chancellor also announced that the standard rate of VAT, which is also charged on fuel, would be cut by 2.5% to 15% for a period of 13 months. As a result of this cut, fuel prices for the private motorist are likely to be largely unchanged by the increase in fuel duty.

That old chestnut - the EU

 

This stance by government to charge tax on tax has been legally challenged before, but alas hide behind the EU ruling that it's acceptable!

 

IMHO, at the very least, it is immoral and unethical and does not uphold the 'spirit' of the Magna Carter.

 

Our Government (cough) seems to me to be hell-bent on one sure-thing, and that it to tax us to oblivion! :

 

Remember how our government told us leaded petrol was bad, and thus justified higher tax? Did they ever reduce the tax on LRP to the same level as unleaded petrol? No.

Remember how diesel used to be cheaper, persuading lots of people to buy diesel cars? What did the government do? They increased the rate of tax on diesel.

Hauliers complained that the extortionate tax on diesel gave foreign competitors an unfair advantage over British companies. Gordon Brown's solution? Introduce a tax on foreign trucks. Genius!

 

And remember when VAT got reduced to 15% the chancellor increased fuel duty by 2p to make up the difference. Now that VAT is going back up to 17.5% that extra duty is not being removed.

 

Scandalous - but I wouldn't expect anything less from 'Nu-Labour'

Edited December 12, 2009 by WebFerret

[interestrateripoff]

Britain and France want bank tax to fund climate change plan

 

Double trouble for banks as both EU and FSA call for new levies and rules

 

 

• Citigroup sued by Terra Firma over EMI deal
  
• Moody's lifts UK's credit rating gloom – for now
  
• Gartmore price cut by a third as appetite for flotations recedes
  
• National Savings pulls bond deals after unprecedented demand
  
• HMV cuts losses as rivals fall victim to slump
  
• Stan Chart adds heavy hitting non-execs
  
• Apple hits back in Nokia patent war
  

 

Stephen Foley: Time to put the brakes on Citigroup

 

US Outlook: Vikram Pandit, Citigroup's chief executive, has spent the past week lashing a horse to the back of a cart and trying to persuade everyone that he's created a roadworthy vehicle.

 

 

• David Prosser: Demanding more flesh from banks
  
• Hamish McRae: Tories have chance to make history
  
• David Prosser: Cuts, cuts and more cuts
  
• James Thompson: After festive cheer, retailing faces a hard slog in 2010
  
• David Prosser: Why Darling may not be able to deliver
  

 

Greek lessons for UK debt

 

Greece's collapse into a borrowing crisis this week has been swift. As Sarah Arnott reports, it is a precedent that the Chancellor must heed

 

 

• Rich, poor, or in between? How you will be affected
  
• Steve Forbes: The agitator working to deliver Forbes to the fourth generation
  
• So what should Darling do today?
  
• The First Decade: Boom, bust and beyond
  
• Eight ways bankers can beat the Revenue
  
• Bonus culture: for and aganist the proposed tax
  

[interestrateripoff]

Breaking news:

 

• Iraq awards oil deals, but no boon for US invaders - Reuters
  
• SNAP ANALYSIS-Iraq flush with oil deals, but will they succeed? - Reuters
  
• China's Hu boosts energy ties with Central Asia - Reuters
  
• Iraq oil deal auction a "success", sees huge output - Reuters
  
• Iraq offers up one of its choicest oilfields - Reuters
  
• U.S. froze $2 bln held for Iran in Citibank-report - Reuters
  
• Questions surround Woods' future as marketing star - Reuters
  
• China says already reached 2009 new job target - Reuters
  
• US/Japan reach 'open skies' aviation pact - Reuters
  
• Questions surround Woods' future as marketing star - Reuters
  

 

 

 

• ECB chief warns against 'self-serving' bonus culture
   
   
  Jean-Claude Trichet says excessive financial rewards encouraged 'self-referential' banking
   
  
  • Goldman retreats over bonuses
    
  • Dan Roberts: Where Brown leads, Goldman follows
    
  • FSA's bank tests just got more stressful
    

   

  [*] Brown and Sarkozy move to fund climate aid with global banking tax

   

   

  Funding through international levy on financial transactions removes major obstacle in talks, says UN climate chief. By Ian Traynor 147 comments

   

  • Transactions tax gathering momentum
    
  • France and Germany back UK bonus tax
    
  • PM bangs heads and crunches figures in Brussels
    

   

  [*] Britain's top credit rating 'safe for now'

   

   

  Pound makes its biggest gains this week as Moody's says Britain's and US's top credit ratings are not under immediate threat 17 comments

   

  • Bond prices fall on UK credit rating fears
    

   

  [*] Shell and Petronas win Iraq oil rights

   

   

  Up to 40 oil companies defied lethal attacks on government targets in Baghdad to bid for partnerships with the Iraqi government

   

 

 

• Christmas cards
   
  Kipper Williams
   
  Six festive cards illustrated by Guardian cartoonist Kipper Williams that you can print out and send to friends and family
  
  
• Mouchel downs tools in Dubai
   
   
  British infrastructure company closing operations as it seeks to recover £10m of debts from the Gulf state
   
  
• 3D renaissance brings £1bn boomtime
   
   
  With the release of James Cameron's Avatar, UK cinema box office receipts are set for a record year
   
  
  • Avatar review: 'James Cameron just got slack'
    
  • Top grossing UK 3D film releases
    

   

 

 

• More business news
   
   
  
  • Whitbread steps up Coffeeheaven talks
     
     
     
    
  • HMV hopes for X Factor Christmas sales boost
     
     
     
    
  • US tills ring out in run-up to Christmas
     
     
     
    
  • Investor concerns delay Gartmore sale
     
     
     
    

[interestrateripoff]

[/url]

 

Stockbroking firms team up to fight bonus tax

 

Eight companies try to clarify whether Alistair Darling's windfall tax would affect stockbrokers – despite such firms having received no taxpayer support.

The Treasury won't tell us the true cost of this debt disaster

 

 

 

Shoppers will put £23bn on debit cards this Christmas

 

Amount is up 4pc on last year, as consumers make the most of low interest rates and increased household budgets, according to Barclays.

 

Coca-Cola warns green taxes could cut its profits by 50pc

 

 

 

 

McDonald's launches $1 breakfast

 

 

 

 

OECD predicts UK expansion for second month in a row

 

 

 

 

Airbus A400M finally flies for first time

 

 

 

 

Gartmore forced to slash IPO price by a quarter

 

 

 

 

Whitbread to buy Polish coffee chain Coffeheaven for £32m

 

 

 

• Alistair Darling's work of fiction has shoppers splashing their imaginary cash
  

 

• You'd think we want to drive bankers away
  

 

 

• GM: one of the most talked about companies should speak up
  

 

UK manufacturers' input costs rise at fastest pace in a year

 

 

 

EU presses IMF to consider Tobin tax

 

 

 

 

Pre-Budget report jitters lead to gilt sell-off

[interestrateripoff]

BarCap rethinks big pay rises

 

Investment banking arm of Barclays halts generous pay rise plan after Chancellor unveiled 50 per cent tax on bonuses 9 Comments

 

• How many gilts can we take?
  

 

• France follows Britain with bank bonus tax
  

 

Cloud hangs over new wave of listings

 

Top investors say reduction in the Gartmore price 'laid down a marker' for upcoming private equity-backed listings 1 Comment

 

• Cloud hangs over new wave of listings
  

 

• Roger Guy of Gartmore
  

 

Lloyds optimistic over £13.5bn rights issue

 

Bank receives strong support for strategy since terms attached to the Government’s scheme emerged 4 Comments

 

• We need bankers more than they need us
  

 

• Taxpayers insure RBS’s foreign toxic assets
  

 

US moves forward on financial reform

 

House of Representatives has approved law which could lead to the biggest reform of Wall Street in almost 80 years

 

• Bernanke's record as Chairman of Fed under fire
  

 

• US Senate proposes to limit power of the Fed
  

 

 

Candover and Cinven offload Springer Science

 

Largest private equity deal for a year sees Sweden's EQT teamed with the Singapore government’s GIC Special Investments

 

Investors in Dragon vote down $1.9bn ENOC bid

 

Investors reject 455p-a-share takeover bid from group's biggest shareholder, a victory for Baillie Gifford

 

Gilt slide continues as debt fears linger

 

Market for government stock hit again amid mounting worries over the UK's credit rating in wake of Pre-Budget Report

 

• Gilts fall over fears for public debt outlook
  

 

• Gilts sales by foreigners fuels deficit fears
  

Construction magnate joins Anglo's board

 

Ray O’Rourke has been appointed a non-executive director in a continuing shake-up at the world’s third-biggest mining group

 

• Anglo American hires Sir Philip Hampton to board
  

 

• Anglo American chief’s big chance
  

Union members vote to strike at Fujitsu

 

Staff at the Japanese-owned technology company will walk out on six days before January 15 over cost-cutting meausures

 

 

Twitter finally in the money with Google link

 

Google’s millions of users can see a scroll of updates, many from Twitter, in their results pages when they make a search

 

Jindal Power plans £1.3bn float

 

Company controlled by India’s richest woman seeks shareholder approval for largest IPO in India for two years

 

• Heineken and United Breweries ready for India
  

 

• India's economy beats growth forecasts
  

Airbus A400M finally takes off

 

After two years of delays, the military transport plane today embarked on a test flight from Seville, Spain

 

• Airbus slows down A400M transport production
  

 

• EADS to audit A400M plan but denies delay
  

US moves forward on financial reform

 

House of Representatives has approved law which could lead to the biggest reform of Wall Street in almost 80 years

How many gilts can we take?

 

The head of the Debt Management Office seems relaxed about selling £400bn worth of the bonds. It is hard to see why

 

• Will Goldman wake up from its PR nightmare?
  

 

• A game not even the supermarkets like playing
  

 

 

Security casts doubt over Iraq investment

 

Real question is whether the country is stable enough to support the billions of dollars of necessary foreign investment

[interestrateripoff]

Pension rise limit may save £350m

Parts of the state pension will be frozen in April despite the chancellor's pledge that it would rise by 2.5%, the BBC learns.

Q&A: The PBR and you

At-a-glance: Pre-Budget key points

Union tries to block Cadbury bid

 

Union leaders contact Cadbury shareholders urging them to block a £10bn hostile takeover bid by the American company Kraft.

 

US House backs financial reform

 

The US House of Representatives approves the most sweeping reforms to the financial sector since the 1930s

 

 

OTHER TOP BUSINESS STORIES

US extends executive pay limits

 

US and Japan agree open air deal

 

Apple and Nokia's battle hots up

 

'Unfair burden' of insurance law

 

Brown denies over-ruling Darling

 

HMV sees gains from fewer rivals

 

MORE FROM BUSINESS

Ukraine wants $2bn loan from IMF

 

Usmanov raises stake in Arsenal

 

Men guilty of share-selling fraud

 

Airbus A400M makes maiden flight

 

Shell wins Iraq oil field rights

 

Boeing 787 nearing first flight

 

Greece says no chance of default

 

US retail sales increase further

 

EU calls for tax on bank trades

 

EU makes 7bn euro climate pledge

 

National Savings pulls policies

 

UK factory input prices increase

 

YOUR MONEY

Pocket money 'up by 11p in 2009'

 

Alert over pension move 'tricks'

 

Household wealth hits £9 trillion

 

ECONOMY

China recovery gathers strength

 

Public sector cuts 'total £36bn'

 

Greece's debt hits 300bn euros

 

COMPANIES

Wendy's burgers to go from Japan

 

No cash bonus for Goldman bosses

 

Royal Mail operating profit up 4%

[interestrateripoff]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/13/business/economy/13rates.html?_r=1&ref=business

 

Mortgage rates in the United States have dropped to their lowest levels since the 1940s, thanks to a trillion-dollar intervention by the federal government. Yet the banks that once handed out home loans freely are imposing such stringent requirements that many homeowners who might want to refinance are effectively locked out.

 

The scarcity of credit not only hurts homeowners but also has broad economic repercussions at a time when consumer spending and employment are showing modest signs of improvement, hinting at a recovery after two years of recession.

 

Refinancing could save owners hundreds of dollars a month, which could be spent, saved or used to pay down debts. Extra spending would help lift the economy, and lower payments might spare some people from losing their homes to foreclosure.

 

The plight of homeowners has become a volatile political issue. On Friday, as the House passed a series of new financial regulations, it narrowly defeated a provision that would have allowed bankruptcy judges to modify the terms of mortgages. The measure was strongly opposed by the banking industry.

 

President Obama, in his weekly address on Saturday, placed much of the blame for the recession on “the irresponsibility of large financial institutions on Wall Street that gambled on risky loans and complex financial products, seeking short-term profits and big bonuses with little regard for long-term consequences.”

 

The president is scheduled to meet with banking executives at the White House on Monday in another administration effort to increase the flow of loans to consumers and small businesses. Among those expected to attend are representatives from Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs.

 

An estimated six of 10 homeowners with mortgages have rates that exceed the 4.8 percent rate currently available on 30-year fixed mortgages, the least risky form of home loans.

 

Nevertheless, only half as many refinancing applications were reported last week than were reported at the beginning of January, the peak level for the year. The total dollar volume of refinancing activity in 2009 will be about $1 trillion. In 2003, another year when rates fell, it was $2.8 trillion.

 

(Mortgage applications to purchase houses showed modest improvement for much of the year, but recently fell sharply to their lowest level in 12 years.)

“The government has succeeded in driving mortgage rates down to their lowest level in our lifetime,” said Guy Cecala, the publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance magazine. “That hasn’t been a big home run, because a lot of people can’t take advantage of it.”

 

It is highly unusual for mortgage money to be available below 5 percent. Average rates fell as low as 4.7 percent in the 1940s, as the government held down interest rates to finance World War II, and stayed just below 5 percent until the early 1950s. Rates went above 5 percent in 1952 and stayed there — until this year.

The super-low rates are not likely to last much longer. The Federal Reserve program that has driven rates to such lows, which involves buying $1.25 trillion in mortgage-backed securities, is scheduled to expire in March, and Fed leaders have said that it would not be renewed.

 

Some analysts believe rates could jump as high as 6 percent in the spring. On a $300,000 mortgage, such a jump would cost an extra $225 a month.

 

Andrew Knapp, a sales executive in Bartlett, Ill., has tried twice to refinance, which would save his family several hundred sorely needed dollars every month. Lenders said the house had lost value and the Knapps had too much debt.

 

“There was no urgency for them to do anything,” Mr. Knapp said.

 

It would appear that the US will hit the buffers again next year if rates go up.

 

I wonder if the banks would have been more accommodating if the taxpayer hadn't bailed them out.

[interestrateripoff]

washingtonpost.com

 

The Greek government on Friday scrambled to put together an emergency plan to rein in its runaway finances amid fears that a debt crisis could reignite turmoil in world markets. With big banks returning to health, the financial woes of entire nations have emerged as the biggest threat to the global economy. Though vows of swift action in Athens eased turbulent bond markets on Friday, analysts continued to warn of concerns even in pillar nations such as Britain.

Investors nervous about Britain's ability to manage its soaring debt in the years ahead dumped its bonds Thursday following the release of a government budget plan that failed to detail how the nation would emerge from under a massive pile of red ink.

Analysts and credit-rating agencies are warning that countries with already high debt levels have rung up historically large deficits during the financial crisis, with tax collection plummeting even as public spending has soared.

 

More fun coming?

[interestrateripoff]

State speeds up payments to 121,000 long-term jobless Californians -- latimes.com

 

Reporting from Sacramento and Los Angeles - Stung by criticism over delayed unemployment extension checks, the Schwarzenegger administration acted to speed up payments to 121,000 long-term jobless Californians, many of whom have been without benefits for more than a month.

 

Checks could arrive as early as midweek, with filings possibly starting Sunday, said Loree Levy, spokeswoman for the state Employment Development Department. The jobs agency had said days earlier that the payments from a federally approved extension of at least 14 weeks could be delayed until the week of Christmas -- or even into the new year.

 

The rapid response came as the agency decided to work around its usual paperwork and begin sending checks out right away, with agency staffers working through the weekend to prepare filings in advance of mailing the payments.

 

Even before the agency said the checks would be more than a month late, complaints had been pouring in from lawmakers, social service advocates and the jobless, many of whom had exhausted their maximum 79 weeks of benefits.

 

An additional 14 weeks of checks went into effect Nov. 8 after being approved by Congress and President Obama, but the payments in California never went out.

 

The jobs agency had blamed its antiquated 30-year-old computer system for complicating programming that needed to be updated to administer the new extension. But things changed in the last few days as criticism mounted.

 

More at the link.

[interestrateripoff]

Festive frenzy as shoppers defy downturn with Christmas spree | Mail Online

 

Shoppers today shrugged off worries about the recession as they shelled out tens of millions of pounds in a Christmas spending blitz.

 

Millions pounded pavements across the UK with some shoppers even queueing for stores to open their doors this morning in the hope of snaring a bargain.

 

More than £120 million was expected to be spent in central London alone this weekend in what is traditionally one of the busiest retail weekends of the year.

By 10.30am more than 200,000 shoppers had already visited London's world famous Oxford Street shopping area.

 

With less than a fortnight until Christmas, shopping was expected to build to a peak later today.

 

By 10.30am more than 200,000 shoppers were already in the heart of London's West End.

 

Jace Tyrrell, spokesman for the New West End Company, which covers Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street, said: 'It has already been very busy this morning.

 

'There's been around 200,000 people through the stores already, and there were people queueing outside some of the shops this morning.

 

'This weekend will be one of the busiest of the year - we are expecting around £120million to go through the tills by the end of tomorrow.'

 

Mr Tyrrell said trading was up on last year despite the recession, with fewer discounted bargains on the shelves.

 

Shopping centres in East Anglia said they were busy and trade appeared to be good.

'We have been quite busy in recent weeks,' said a spokeswoman for the Queensgate centre in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire.

 

'We do seem to be particularly busy today. We obviously haven't got any figures but from what I can see we're as busy this Christmas as ever.

 

'Certainly, just speaking as a shopper it seems to me that people are out shopping and spending money.'

 

A spokeswoman for Bluewater shopping centre in Greenhithe, Kent, said it had been 'extremely' busy today.

 

The number of shoppers through the doors was unavailable but she said the car park, which has 13,000 spaces, was 'nearly full'.

 

However, other indications suggested that shoppers' confidence did not match retailers'.

 

A Times/Populus poll showed that adults expect to spend an average £321 on gifts this year - down £37.50 from last year's Christmas budget.

 

Does Oxford Street normally get these numbers?

 

A nice winter ramping headline to make everyone feel everything is OK, debt is wealth.

[interestrateripoff]

November Retail Sales... - The Market Ticker

 

Here's the headline argument made by the media...

Dec. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Sales at U.S. retailers rose more than forecast in November, a sign consumer spending is gathering speed heading into 2010.

Really?

Gallup says otherwise, actual POS data says otherwise, at least with regard to Black Friday.

So what's going on here?

Well we could start with this, that Bloomberg, by the way, didn't report...

Special Notice -

The advance estimates in this report are the first estimates from a new sample. The new sample for the Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey is selected about once every two and a half years.

Oh, so the sampling has changed? Uh, doesn't that make for a somewhat-difficult argument that we're measuring apples to apples?

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for November,

adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes

,

What's more expensive this year than last (since y/o/y is the more accurate measurement in general, as it nulls errors in seasonal adjustments.)

Gasoline: 33,303 .vs. 31,411. Big change - that's roughly six percent in one month! Annualized it is a roughly 10% change - gas was more expensive, basically, and most gasoline demand is inelastic (gotta get to work!)

There are some other problems evident in the data. Non-store retailers were up significantly, but there is no current-month data for online broken out, and somehow there's a bunch "missing" for the last month where the monthly breakout IS present.

On its face it looks like a good report. However, the sampling change along with some of the missing internal sub-sets for the current month make it nearly impossible for me to evaluate whether we're seeing broad-based strength on an actual basis or whether gasoline and sampling revisions are responsible for most of it.

I'm deeply skeptical of these numbers, mostly because the other data available that I've cited in recent days - the Gallup Survey, the actual POS data stream analysis, and ShopperTrack's latest - all say that Black Friday was down modestly (or worse.)

Was the front of the month that much better on "hope and change" only to get blown to bits over the Thanksgiving Holiday? I don't buy it and thus far the preponderance of the evidence does not point toward a broad-based consumption recovery.

 

 

But the recovery is here, so rejoice.

[interestrateripoff]

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: Six-Figure Federal Salary Gravy Train

 

At a time when incomes are plunging for the private sector middle-class, More Federal Employees Get Six-Figure Salaries.

 

The number of federal workers earning six-figure salaries has exploded during the recession, according to a USA TODAY analysis of federal salary data.

 

Federal employees making salaries of $100,000 or more jumped from 14% to 19% of civil servants during the recession's first 18 months — and that's before overtime pay and bonuses are counted.

 

Federal workers are enjoying an extraordinary boom time — in pay and hiring — during a recession that has cost 7.3 million jobs in the private sector.

 

Defense Department civilian employees earning $150,000 or more increased from 1,868 in December 2007 to 10,100 in June 2009, the most recent figure available.

 

When the recession started, the Transportation Department had only one person earning a salary of $170,000 or more. Eighteen months later, 1,690 employees had salaries above $170,000.

 

The growth in six-figure salaries has pushed the average federal worker's pay to $71,206, compared with $40,331 in the private sector.

 

How the $!!! can the department of transportation possibly justify 1,690 workers making in excess of $170,000?

 

The Federal Aviation Administration also has 1,700 workers making in excess of $170,000.

 

The Department of Transportation was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966. Now there are over 56,000 employees according to the Department of Transportation Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Highlights.

 

The fiscal insanity does not stop with numbers of employees and their salaries. One also needs to factor in pension benefits that private sector employees do not receive.

 

A near 30% increase in numbers earning 6 figures. Some people in govt must be working really hard or someone had a look at the UK and thought now there's a model we can copy!

 

It would appear the US has just discovered one of the best gravy train models in the world, judging by the explosion in salaries they are loving it.