A New Global Trade Deal

An international agreement estimated to boost global trade by $1 trillion a year has entered into force. Roberto Azevedo, the Director General of the World Trade Organization, called this agreement "the biggest reform of global trade in a generation".

It is necessary to recall that the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) was finally agreed in 2013, at a meeting in Bali, but could not come into force until 110 countries had ratified it.

The TFA involves streamlining customs procedures, which is considered to have a bigger impact than eliminating all existing taxes (tariffs) on imports. Countries will sign up to a long list of reforms, including easier access for businesses to information, reduced fees and simpler and faster procedures.

According to the WTO economists, the agreement would cut the cost of trading by about 14.3%. They also said that the developing nations would gain the most.

The Trade Facilitation Agreement is one of the few successes of a much wider set of negotiations that were launched in 2001 at the Doha Round.

Source:
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-39049074

The Biggest Tax Haven Countries of 2016

According to the Oxfam Novib's (a worldwide development organisation) list of the world's 15 biggest tax havens, the Netherlands represents the biggest tax haven in the EU and the 3rd biggest in the world. The country is surpassed only by Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, which are ranked on the 1st and 2nd positions respectively.

Other European Union member states included in the top 15 are - Switzerland on 4th place, Ireland in 6th and Luxembourg on 7th position. Curacao is the 8th biggest tax haven in the world. And the British Virgin Islands made it to 15th place.

The countries on this list have no or very low corporate tax rates, give unfair tax incentives to businesses and do not participate in international measures against tax evasion. Oxfam Novib accuses these countries of increasing the inequality between states.

The world's 15 biggest tax havens, according to Oxfam Novib, are:

15. The British Virgin Islands
14. Mauritius
13. Barbados
12. Jersey
11. Bahamas
10. Cyprus
9. Hong Kong
8. Curacao
7. Luxembourg
6. Ireland
5. Singapore
4. Switzerland
3. Netherlands
2. Cayman Islands
1. Bermuda


Source:
http://nltimes.nl/2016/12/12/netherlands-europes-biggest-tax-haven-says-oxfam-novib