The Finance Minister of China has revealed the country's fiscal policy intentions for the upcoming year, saying that the Government will focus its tax system development efforts on improving national income distributions and aiding low-income areas across the country. On December 27th the Finance Minister of China Xie Xuren spoke at the National Financial Work Conference which took place in Beijing, explaining the Government's fiscal policy outlook for the 2011 year. He stated that a set of proactive policies will be implemented in ... Read More

Indications have arisen that China could soon take steps towards introducing numerous changes to its taxation system, including reforms to Value Added Tax, Resource Taxes, Personal and Corporate Income Taxes, along with property taxes. The Chinese Government is giving consideration to changes in almost every aspect of the national tax system, in order to improve the overall efficiency of the economy and revamp tax revenue streams. The intention was revealed in a statement by Xu Lin, director of the Department of Fiscal and ... Read More

The Government of the People’s Republic of China has hinted at the gradual introduction of a new tax on properties, in an effort to quell the nation’s booming real-estate sector and downplay the effects of speculative investment. On May 31st the State Council of China issued a statement confirming the approval of a fiscal reform proposal submitted to the Government by the National Development and Reform Commission. The State Council did not reveal the entirety of the intended property tax reforms, but stated ... Read More

The Government of Germany and the Government of Canada are initiating separate international bank tax campaigns, although, the two nations are pursuing for opposing views. Ahead of the upcoming June G20 Summit in Toronto, Canada, the German and Canadian Governments are increasing efforts in swaying international Governments towards their views on the proposed introduction of an international bank tax system. At a conference on new financial regulations held in Berlin on May 20th, German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated "We will campaign for a ... Read More

Governments of emerging Asian economies have been warned to be ready for sudden increases in investment capital inflows, and prepare appropriate policy responses. On May 18th the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released its annual Asian Capital Markets Monitor report, which investigates the performance and outlooks for the equity, bond and currency markets in emerging economies. According to the report, several factors have cumulatively increased the risk of Asian economies facing sudden high levels of investment capitals, leading potential destabilization of currency and financial ... Read More

The Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department (IRD) and the State Administration of Taxation (SAT) of the People’s Republic of China recently held a public conference, where both administrations demonstrated a commitment to collaborating on issues surrounding transfer pricing (TP) and associated taxation matters. The conference was intended to provide insights into both administrations’ legislative perspectives and increase certainty surrounding transfer pricing and tax avoidance issues for cross-border business. At the conference the IRD emphasized its acceptance and attempts to closely follow the Organization ... Read More

In a recent speech given by the Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to the Finance Ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the key economic and fiscal issues, that the IMF perceives as currently facing ASEAN nations, were revealed. On April 26th the IMF published a previously unreleased transcript of a speech given by Naoyuki Shinohara, Deputy Managing Director of the IMF, at the 14th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ Meeting, held on April 8th 2010 in Nha Trang, ... Read More