Russia’s Gazprom is close to finalizing its long-running talks on supplying gas to China, according to the head of the firm’s export branch Aleksandr Medvedev.
Eighteen months ago Gazprom and the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation agreed in principal to the sale of Russian gas, but didn’t agree on a price.
Within a year plans were in motion to begin the construction of a $14bn pipeline, all that was needed was an agreement on price from the Chinese.
Medvedev says China has started an experimental pricing mechanism in two provinces, allowing locals to buy gas at the price level Gazprom suggests. “
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International law firm McDermott Will & Emery today announced that it has named Tom Scott as the new head of its London tax practice group. Mr. Scott is the second partner to join McDermott’s U.S. and International Tax practice this year.
Prior to joining McDermott Mr. Scott was a senior tax partner at global accounting firm KPMG LLP for six years where he was Global Lead Tax Partner for several of the firm’s largest clients. Before joining KPMG, he was a tax partner at Linklaters for 15 years, where he focused on the tax aspects of cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
“We are delighted to welcome Tom to McDermott,” said Lowell D. Yoder,
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FlexShares, the ETF unit of Chicago-based Northern Trust, filed regulatory paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission to market an international version of a U.S. small cap and value tilt ETF it launched in September of last year.
The new FlexShares Morningstar Developed ex-US Markets Factor Tilt Index Fund targets broad developed-markets equities, excluding those in the United States, with a slight tilt to small-capitalization and value stocks, giving it a cache that a straight market-cap weighted fund wouldn’t have.
FlexShares said in the filing the new ETF will trade on Arca, the New York Stock Exchange’s electronic trading platform, under the symbol TLTD. It
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Which 2012 presidential candidate is best for small businesses? A summary of the top 2012 presidential candidates and the main issues related to small businesses including minimum wage, tax rates, business expenses, and more from our good friends over at Fast Up Front.
� 2012 FastUpFront Business Loans Made Easy.
OK, it may be a stretch of a metaphor to compare the IRS to the Light Brigade, but I’m starting to worry the IRS is doomed.
Late last week, the IRS issued a new estimate of the tax gap based on the 2006 tax year. The tax gap is the amount of tax liability owed by taxpayers that is not paid on time.
This is the first full update of the numbers in five years. Looking at the raw numbers – the gross tax gap – the tax gap grew from $345 billion in 2001 to $450 billion in 2006. To my simple mind, this is growth – and not in a good way – of more than a hundred billion bucks. But according to the IRS, this represents no change at all: “On a relative basis, the tax gap is largely in line with the growth in total tax liabilities. In addition
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The European community bids farewell to the worst year for the eurozone, which saw the toughest economic crisis in decades. The battle to save the single currency left boardrooms and flooded European streets – most commonly and violently in Athens.
For Greece, the country most severely affected by the financial disaster, 2011 was a year of despair and discontent. Greek debt became the centerpiece of the euro crisis. Protests in the country have become a common occurrence against desperate austerity cuts to qualify for IMF bailouts and unemployment crippling record high.
The financial crisis in Greece has migrated to other European countries, including Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Italy.
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McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, which operates under the McGladrey brand as one of the USA’s leading providers of assurance, tax and consulting services, recently named Jin Bahk as tax partner, based out of the firm’s Vienna office.
“At McGladrey, it’s all about understanding our clients – their business, their aspirations and their challenges,” said Rick Bailine, leader of the McGladrey Washington National Tax Corporate Tax and Transactions team. “Jin’s 17 years of tax and business experience demonstrates his understanding of the industry and will, no doubt, help us ensure our clients’ success.”
Bahk has 17 years of tax and business experience, having most recently served as director of global tax for a real estate private equity firm, where he was responsible for worldwide taxes for the funds, investments and investor reporting packages. He holds a J.D. fro
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Global X, the New York ETF company knows for its equity funds focused on commodities and the emerging markets, today launched two new funds linked to Nasdaq indexes that provide investors broad exposure to an array of nonfinancial stocks.
The two new funds, which come with an annual expense ratio of 0.48 percent, are:
- Global X Nasdaq 500 ETF (NasdaqGM: QQQV)
- Global X Nasdaq 400 Mid Cap ETF (NasdaqGM: QQQM)
The rollout reflects Global X’s plan to embrace Nasdaq indexes. For example, Global X recently said that around Dec. 15, it would be changing the ticker on its China Technology Fund from (NYSEArca: CHIB) to “QQQC” on the Nasdaq—a clear resemblance to the tickers of the funds it rolled out today. It sai
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One of the most common aspects of a job application is the background check compliance, yet many applicants breeze past this section when filing out an application. Although it may seem like nothing to a candidate (at least one who has nothing to hide), it actually means a great deal to employers. For most companies, performing a background check is one of the major components of the hiring process. Businesses must take precautions when interviewing and hiring a potential member of a company, and by screening applicants, employers are able to decrease the applicant pool and focus on the most qualified individuals.
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I hate to drag you away from your fascination with Herman Cain’s 999 plan and Rick Perry’s flat tax, but if we are going to make real progress, we can’t fixate on every overhyped, half-baked tax slogan that comes along. Sooner or later we must get back to basics. Here’s the main question: Should taxes be cut, raised, or reformed without changing overall revenue? The answer is that taxes should be cut in the short term, raised after we are clearly out of our cyclical downturn, and then reformed only after we have settled on the magnitude of tax increases needed for deficit reduction.
Step 1: Short-Term Tax Cuts
Though it has been three-and-a-half years since the economy began its tailspin, we still need stimulus.
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