Property income

For the past two years, the United Nations has ranked Finland as the world's happiest country. The U.S. has never scored in the top 10 since the index was launched in 2011, and in 2019 it plummeted to 19th. While Finland seems perennially chirpy, the U.S. is seeing growing rates of depression, drug addiction, and suicide . Here are six reasons that residents of Finland (7.1 percent of whom are immigrants, BTW) are so happy when compared with their American counterparts: 1. Finns pay higher taxes but see more results. According to the conservative think tank the Brookings Institute, Finland collects 44 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) in taxes versus the 26 percent of GDP that the U.S. collected in 2015. (For comparison, Denmark collects 46 percent and Mexico 17 percent.) So taxes are relatively high in Finland, which you'd think would tend to reduce overall happiness. However, higher taxes don't seem to bother the Finns, for two reasons: … [Read more...] about Why Finland Is So Happy (and the U.S. Is So Depressed)

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The looming prospect of compliance with the reporting requirements in section 6050I has been a problem for the digital asset industry since the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58) last November. The requirements pose procedural obstacles and privacy concerns for taxpayers, but the government has an interest in ensuring compliance with the tax laws. The revised version of section 6050I requires taxpayers engaged in a trade or business to file an information return when they receive $10,000 or more in digital assets in one transaction or two or more related transactions in the course of that trade or business. The information required is the name, address, and tax identification number of the person from whom the assets were received; the amount of the assets; and the date and nature of the transaction. The provision was originally designed for cash transactions. The brief push for … [Read more...] about Tax Information Reporting On Digital Assets Steps Into The Spotlight

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): Bursa Malaysia closed broadly higher on Monday (June 27) on persistent buying interest mainly in technology and energy stocks, said an analyst. At 5pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.42 points to 1,438.12 from Friday's close of 1,436.7. The benchmark index, which opened 2.12 points higher at 1,438.82, fluctuated between 1,431.65 and 1,441.03 throughout the trading session. On the broader market, gainers beat losers 546 to 365, while 393 counters were unchanged, 1,004 untraded, and 55 others suspended. Total turnover expanded to 2.65 billion units worth RM1.43 billion from 2.46 billion units worth RM1.47 billion on Friday. Key regional markets also continued to trend higher following positive cues on Wall Street including the upbeat performance of the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite last Friday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI, which ended 0.1% … [Read more...] about Bursa ends broadly higher

- A + A HONG KONG (June 27): China's fourth-biggest developer may miss a local bond payment for its first time ever, pressuring an onshore credit market that has remained resilient amid a property debt crisis and record offshore defaults. Sunac Real Estate Group Co said in an exchange filing on Friday it likely would not be able to raise enough funds to make a 400 million yuan (US$60 million) payment due June 30 for a portion of the note principal along with related interest. The deadline is part of an instalment plan Sunac got approval for several months ago that extended full repayment of the four billion yuan security by 18 months. A separate note maturing next year fell 15% on Monday while some due in 2025 closed at record lows, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. China's US$12.3 trillion local bond market has so far held up relatively well despite a cash crunch in the property sector sparked by a government crackdown on excessive leverage and housing … [Read more...] about Chinese builder Sunac may miss local bond payment in a first

- A + A MUMBAI/MANILA (June 27): Signs of distress flashing in bond markets suggest the world's poorest nations are set to see a wave of debt restructurings. But a growing cohort of investors say that is a buying opportunity. Panic selling in the aftermath of Sri Lanka's economic collapse has sent the average yield in junk-rated emerging economies to almost 900 basis points above US Treasuries, the highest risk premium in 13 years except for the Covid-19-related rout in 2020, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co data. Yet, initial fears about a widespread default Armageddon across emerging markets is easing, and money managers are looking beyond the handful of countries that may reschedule their debt. This shift in perception means at least some smaller developing nations, called frontier markets, have been unduly punished in the recent sell-off and now offer highly attractive yields. Even in the event of debt restructuring, their bonds will offer greater recovery … [Read more...] about Frontier-debt buyers look past default risk in hunger for yield

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on March 31, 2020 . - A + A Permaju Industries Bhd (-ve) Permaju Industries Bhd (fundamental: 0.75/3, valuation: 0.3/3) made it into our Stocks with Momentum list yesterday for the sixth time in March. The counter settled four sen or 4.02% lower at 95.5 sen, with 13.02 million shares traded, over three times its 200-day average volume of 3.65 million shares. For the second quarter ended June 30, 2019, Permaju reported a net loss of RM762,000 on a revenue of RM18.55 million. The revenue was mainly derived from its automotive division. There were no comparison numbers for the previous year’s corresponding period, due to a change in its financial year end from Dec 31 to June 30. For the cumulative six-month period, Permaju posted a net loss of RM1.36 million on a revenue of RM37.36 million. The loss was because of losses recorded for its automotive, timber and property divisions, which … [Read more...] about Stock With Momentum: Permaju Industries

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on March 31, 2020 . - A + A Euro Holdings Bhd (-ve) TRADING of shares in Euro Holdings Bhd (fundamental: 0.35/3, valuation: 0.3/3) triggered our momentum algorithm yesterday for the fourth time this year. The counter closed eight sen or 25.4% higher at 39.5 sen, with 11.04 million shares traded, over six times its 200-day average volume of 1.77 million shares. The group is principally engaged in the design, manufacturing and trading of its own brand of chairs, system furniture, storage and accessories. For the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2019, the group’s net loss almost doubled to RM4.18 million from RM2.18 million for the corresponding period last year, mainly due to higher cost incurred and a provision for late delivery by the property division. Quarterly revenue fell 32% to RM18.16 million from RM26.6 million, due to lower property completion rates and lower sales owing to … [Read more...] about Stock With Momentum: Euro Holdings

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on April 1, 2020 . - A + A Sanichi Technology Bhd (+ve) TRADING of shares in Sanichi Technology Bhd (fundamental: 1.2/3, valuation: 0.9/3) triggered our momentum algorithm yesterday for the first time this year. The counter closed half a sen or 10% lower at 4.5 sen, with 76.4 million shares traded, over six times its 200-day average volume of 12.24 million shares. The loss-making company continued to bleed in its fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2019 with a net loss of RM1.34 million — its fifth straight quarterly loss — albeit at a smaller volume compared with RM11.04 million a year ago, due to lower operating costs from cost-controlling measures implemented. Revenue for the quarter also jumped more than three times to RM12.53 million from RM3.53 million a year ago, as revenue recognition in its property development segment picked up. For the full year ended Dec 31, 2019, the company’s net … [Read more...] about Stock With Momentum: Sanichi Technology

Lim is accused of using his position as Penang chief minister to aid CZCSB secure the undersea tunnel project in return for 10% in the profits of the project from Zarul, which resulted in an alleged RM3.3 million in kickbacks to be received by the former. (Photo by Shahrin Yahya/The Edge) - A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): “Dummy” documents were used to withdraw company money to make bribe payments to former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng, a former executive testified on Monday (June 27). Azli Adam, the former senior vice-president of finance and corporate services at of Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (CZCSB), said falsified invoices and payment vouchers (PVs) were used to obfuscate the withdrawal of the company cash. Testifying in Lim’s undersea tunnel project graft trial at the Sessions Court, Azli said CZCSB director Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli "confessed" this to him after Zarul was arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in … [Read more...] about ‘Dummy’ documents used to facilitate bribe payments to Guan Eng, says former company exec

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin (The Edge filepix by Suhaimi Yusuf) - A + A PUTRAJAYA (June 27): The Special Committee to Combat Double Burden of Malnutrition Among Children in Malaysia approved the 2022-2030 National Strategic Plan to Address the Problem of Stunting in Children in its first meeting on Monday (June 27). Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the national strategic plan would be presented to the Cabinet and the Finance Ministry, so that the plan to combat malnutrition in children would be raised as a national agenda for the well-being of the Malaysian Family in the 2023 Budget. "Our target is to ensure that the problem of stunting among children can be reduced to at least eight per cent by 2030," he told a press conference after officiating the #AnakMalaysiaSihat Media Programme here on Monday. The committee comprising personnel from the Health Ministry (MOH), Ministry of Education (MOE), Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development … [Read more...] about Strategic plan to prevent stunting in children approved