“President Donald Trump said Thursday he wants a strong U.S. dollar, claiming that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was misinterpreted when he said earlier this week that the weak U.S. currency is good for trade.”
Read more: http://www.newsweek.com/trump-treasury-secretary-misinterpreted-strong-dollar-791449
“‘The blockchain is real,’ Dimon added in the interview. ‘You can have cryptodollars in yen and stuff like that. ICOs … you got to look at every one individually. The bitcoin was always to me what the governments are going to feel about bitcoin when it gets really big. And I just have a different opinion than other people.'”
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/09/jamie-dimon-says-he-regrets-calling-bitcoin-a-fraud.html
“Several major Indian banks have suspended the accounts of top Bitcoin exchanges in India. State Bank of India, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Yes Bank cited suspicious payments in their decisions. The move comes after tax authorities sent notices to cryptocurrency investors warning that they must pay capital gains on their income from the virtual currency. For the few accounts still open, the banks have asked for more collateral, and have capped cash withdrawals.”
Read more: https://dowbit.com/indian-banks-freeze-major-cryptocurrency-exchange-accounts/
“South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges will this year need to pay 22% corporate and 2.2% local income taxes on last year’s earnings by the end of March and April respectively, if they had an annual income of over 20 billion won ($18.8 million) during 2016. On Sunday, Yonhap quoted another official as saying cryptocurrency exchanges would soon be required to share users’ transaction data with banks—another move that would help the authorities collect tax. South Korea’s ongoing cryptocurrency crackdown has been one of the prime causes of bitcoin’s recent volatility. Last month, the government instituted real-name policies for virtual-currency traders and banned investors from opening new accounts.”
Read more: http://fortune.com/2018/01/22/south-korea-bitcoin-exchange-tax/
“San Diego is cracking down on several restaurants that city officials say are adding surcharges in misleading and illegal ways to help cover increased labor costs from the minimum wage hike that took effect Jan. 1.”
Read more: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sd-me-wage-enforcement-20170105-story.html
“The announcement marks President Trump’s first major trade action of 2018 and follows his campaign promise to get tough on America’s trading partners. A tariff, or tax, of 30% will be applied to imported solar panels, most of which come from China. Tariffs will begin at 20% on large residential washing machines, according to the announcement Monday from U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.”
Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2018/01/22/news/economy/us-tariff-washing-machines-solar-cells/index.html
“Attorney General Jeff Sessions is actively lobbying Congress to overturn existing law prohibiting federal interference in state medical-marijuana policy. As someone who believes in strong constitutional limits on federal power and the rights of patients to choose, I am deeply disappointed. And as a cancer survivor who wanted the choice for myself, I wonder: does Sessions have any idea what it’s like?”
Read more: https://fee.org/articles/jeff-sessions-should-ask-cancer-patients-about-cannabis/
“The guys with guns are at work. The guys with approval stamps are not. A shutdown means the government can’t give you permission to do things, but it can sure as heck still stop you.”
Read more: https://reason.com/blog/2018/01/22/reminder-the-parts-of-the-federal-govern
“Most of the states with dropping populations are high tax states. California, Rhode Island, and New York are all expected to lose Congressional seats. Illinois is hit especially hard with a fleeing populace, so much so that it may lose two seats.”
“If New Jersey and Massachusetts approve new millionaires’ taxes, it is difficult to predict how much will be raised and where these funds will ultimately wind up. But if New York and California are any guide, income surtaxes will be destructive. When it comes to higher taxation, interstate migration is just the tip of the iceberg. Higher-tax states, for instance, see less innovative activity and scientific research according to an analysis by economists at the Federal Reserve and UC Berkeley. Any benefits of millionaires’ taxes do not make up for the economic and social toll caused by fewer innovative activities and correspondingly lower job creation.”
Read more: https://fee.org/articles/raising-millionaires-taxes-will-drive-them-away/