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Haydn W

Taxing Carbon Is Like Taxing Diamonds | Mary Manning Cleveland - 0 views

www.huffingtonpost.com/...bon-is-like-tax_b_3965170.html

Huffington Post Price Elasticity Fossil Fuels Carbon Emissions Demand Supply

shared by Haydn W on 19 Oct 13 - No Cached
  • Taxing Carbon Is Like Taxing Diamonds
  • To reduce carbon emissions, we must tax fossil fuels -- but, say the pundits, we can't do so because the tax would be regressive, clobbering the poor.
  • Imagine that we impose a sales tax on diamonds. Would we worry about the burden on middle-class purchasers of one-fourth-caret engagement rings? What about the part of the tax "passed back" onto the DeBeers Group? Not much sympathy for global monopolists either.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Surprisingly, a carbon tax would operate much like a diamond tax, for reasons both of demand and supply.
  • Demand: The wealthy actually consume a disproportionate amount of carbon. Discussions of a carbon tax usually focus on the price of gasoline. One gallon of gas produces about 17 pounds of CO2. One metric ton is 2,204 pounds. So a $100 tax on a ton of CO2 comes to $0.77 per gallon -- a significant cost to low-income commuters and small truckers.
  • A May 2013 federal study of the Social Cost of Carbon estimated costs of additional CO2 emissions for 2010 to 2050 ranging from $27 to $221 per metric ton in 2050, depending on assumptions.
  • Demand elasticity for oil is low, about 0.5; so a 1 percent increase in oil price would cause a 0.5 percent decrease in consumption. That makes sense, since in the short run, it's hard for people to cut energy consumption, especially if they must drive to work. But, though numbers are hard to come by, elasticity of supply is much, much lower, for two reasons. First, oil production takes decades and billions in capital investment; producers cannot quickly increase or decrease supply. Second, oil producers form an international cartel, an organized mega-monopoly, which holds down production to drive up prices. Since they're already charging what the traffic will bear, they can't much raise prices to cover a tax.
  • As economists long ago figured out, buyers and sellers share a tax in inverse proportion to elasticity. Therefore, if supply elasticity of carbon is, say, 0.1, while demand elasticity is 0.5, the suppliers will pay five times as much of the tax as consumers. That reduces that $0.77 per gallon gas tax to only $0.13. Moreover, precisely because most of the tax falls on suppliers, it will generate plenty of revenue to help those unfortunate long-distance commuters and small truckers, to build more public transportation, to invest in renewable energy, and even to cut super-regressive taxes like the payroll tax.
  • According to Edward Wolff, in 2007, the top 1 percent in the U.S. owned 43 percent of non-home wealth, mostly securities, including of course energy company stocks and bonds. The top 10 percent of wealth holders owned 83 percent.
  • But the very poor don't drive or travel or occupy much space; the rich fly planes, including private jets; drive to low-density suburbs; occupy and heat multiple houses and hotels; and buy lots of stuff. Clearly the rich consume much more carbon per capita than the poor.
  • So we have good news and bad news. Good news: The cost of reducing carbon emissions will fall hardest on the 1 percent, who consume the most energy and own the energy companies. Bad news: Ditto. Expect a fight!
  • Haydn W on 19 Oct 13
     
    This article talks about the economic implications of imposing a tax on carbon emissions and how this would affect the different social classes of society in different ways. The article makes specific reference to economic theory and the elements on elasticity.
  • Jakub B on 20 Oct 13
     
    Taxation almost always decrease the economic surplus and therefore it makes a decline in effectiveness. In this case, the energy companies will be the most affected group.
Haydn W

Japan's consumer inflation set to reach five-year high | World news | The Guardian - 0 views

www.theguardian.com/...sumer-inflation-five-year-high

The Guardian Japan 'Inflation

shared by Haydn W on 19 Apr 14 - No Cached
  • Country sees core consumer prices soar as sales tax hike forms part of PM Shinzo Abe's plan for reviving moribund economy
  • Core consumer prices in Tokyo, a leading indicator of nationwide inflation, appear to have risen by the largest amount for 22 years in April after an increase in Japan's sales tax drove up prices
  • The poll also suggested the headline figure for Japan's nationwide consumer inflation may have reached a five-year high in March
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Higher inflation is a key aim of the economic policies of the country's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, who was elected in 2012
  • Japanese consumer prices are expected to keep showing steady headway towards the Bank of Japan's 2% inflation target. But the erosion of consumer spending power due to the sales tax increase – to 8% from 5% – underlines the need for long-stagnant wages to catch up with inflation to underpin consumption and help economic recovery.
  • The core consumer price index for Tokyo, available a month before the nationwide data, is likely to have increased 2.8% in April from a year earlier
  • Haydn W on 19 Apr 14
     
    Japan's inflation rate continues to rise according to this article from the Guardian. Prime minister Shinzo Abe aims to boost the inflation rate in the country to an approximate 2% level but, as typical with many countries, wages have not caught up with these levels and thus consumer spending power has been reduced drastically. Other interesting things to note are the rise in electricity and gas prices contributing to the increased CPI data.
John B

A Fair, Free Market Or The Copyright Monopoly? - Falkvinge on Infopolicy - 0 views

falkvinge.net/...rket-or-the-copyright-monopoly

Monopoly

shared by John B on 09 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • The copyright industry likes to pretend that making copies is somehow “stealing” and that on a fair and free market, everybody would be forced to buy from them.
  • the copyright industry deliberately confuses the goods that they offer for sale with the service of duplication, which is a completely different kind of offering. The service of duplication is what’s on an immoral, anachronistic monopoly, not the goods themselves.
  • In my world, and in a fair and free market, any entrepreneur or executive that claims a moral right to prohibit others by law from competing with them can fuck off and die.
  • John B on 09 Feb 14
     
    this article wants to tell us that the copyright monopoly is something bad. That it slows down the development in the future. Personally, I would say that this article is not thought through since it is contradicting and use language like "can fuck off and die". The writer aims a lot on the right of duplicating, and that copyright monopoly stands in its way for that. I would say that duplicating something that a company has put a lot of money and time on, would not be morally right, because the one that is duplicating it will spend a very little fortune and time on doing this compared to the real producers. It is actually a pretty bad article, it feels like the writer tries to promote the duplication right of copying movies, programs, etc. and then share it on for example pirate bay.
Haydn W

Royal Mail shares soar 38% as Labour complains of knockdown price | UK news | The Guardian - 0 views

www.theguardian.com/...mail-share-price-buyers-profit

The Guardian Royal Mail Demand Supply Equilibrium UK `Shares FTSE100 Stock

shared by Haydn W on 12 Oct 13 - No Cached
  • Royal Mail shares soar 38% as Labour complains of knockdown price
  • Ed Miliband blames government for underpricing in 'fire-sale of a great British insititution' as investors make £284 paper profit
  • The government has been accused of shortchanging taxpayers by selling off Royal Mail at a knockdown price after shares in the privatised postal service rose by 38%
  • ...14 more annotations...
  • George Osborne said the privatisation had been a huge success.
  • Royal Mail stock, which the government sold at 330p, leapt to 455p
  • Royal Mail's market value rose by £1bn to £4.3bn – confirming that it will join the FTSE 100 list of Britain's biggest companies.
  • The government had valued Royal Mail at a maximum of £3.3bn, and had attacked analysts' valuation of £4.5bn as "way out".
  • Frances O'Grady, general secretary of the TUC, tweeted: "Privatising #RoyalMail has become little different from selling five pound notes for four quid."
  • Miliband, the Labour leader, said the jump in the share price – which made an immediate £284 paper profit for almost 700,000 Royal Mail investors – showed that the privatisation was a "fire sale of a great British institution"
  • Asked whether the shares had been sold too cheaply, the chancellor said: "All privatisations are done at a discount.
  • The National Audit Office, the public spending watchdog, will investigate the pricing of the float, but Cable dismissed the huge share price rise – which was bigger than that experienced on the 1980s flotation of BT and British Gas – as "froth and speculation" and said "what matters is where the price eventually settles".
  • The stockbrokers Peel Hunt said: "This is not 'froth'; it's real people buying, selling."
  • Joe Rundle, head of trading at ETX Capital, described the share price surge as a "dazzling stock market debut".
  • Private investors who bought their shares directly from the government will have to wait until at least Tuesday if they want to sell. About 690,000 people were granted 227 Royal Mail shares worth £749.10 (at the 330p float price) following overwhelming public demand for the shares.
  • The public applied for more than seven times the number of shares available to them, which meant nearly everyone did not get as many shares as they had asked for.
  • More than 36,000 people who applied for more than £10,000 worth of shares were prevented from buying any at all. About 40 people applied for shares worth £1m or more.
  • It is understood that about 20% of the shares available have gone to sovereign wealth funds – including those of Kuwait, Norway and Singapore – and other foreign funds. Royal Mail's 150,000 employees collected 10% of the shares free of charge, worth about £2,200 each at the flotation price and now worth £2,900. Employees were also allowed to buy a further £10,000 worth, but are not allowed to sell for three years
  • Haydn W on 12 Oct 13
     
    This article shows how demand for shares in the newly floated UK postal service Royal Mail has pushed the price up from 330p a share to 450p. This is the price in which demand is seen to be equal to supply, something the UK Government are being criticised for failing to notice as they believed 450p was a far to high price. The move itself if highly controversial and has been a hotly debated topic ever since it's proposal with many employees fearing that jobs will be lost.
  • Yassine G on 12 Oct 13
     
    I think this is really normal. Simply because private companies tend to have higher efficiency rates and therefore make more profits, this is the business part of the reason. Now if we consider the economical reason, I think that higher profits (deviants) will attract a lot more shareholders, this means higher demand. from the other side, shareholders will be willing to keep their shares as the company is making more and more profits, therefore less shares supply. So in short, more demand, less supply of shares could not lead to anything else except hiher prices and greater value of the company.
Marenne M

Super Bowl XLVIII Pricing: A Lesson In Demand Elasticity - Forbes - 1 views

www.forbes.com/...-a-lesson-in-demand-elasticity

Price elasticity

shared by Marenne M on 27 Sep 13 - No Cached
  • club-level seats in the mezzanine of MetLife Stadium are likely to cost about $2,600, as compared to the $1,250 charged for the top tickets at last year’s Super Bowl in New Orleans.
  • next-cheapest set of tickets in the lower bowl of MetLife would cost about $1,500, up from the $950 charged for second-tier seats sold in New Orleans.
  • professional sports teams typically price their inventory in the inelastic portion of their demand functions.
  • ...6 more annotations...
  • eams charge too low a price to maximize ticket revenues
  • maximum attendance
  • omplementary purchases associated with sporting attendance…such as concessions, parking, merchandise.
  • maximizing ‘revenue per seat’ as opposed to just gate revenues
  • onsiderable mark-ups for Super Bowl tickets
  • willingness to spend thousands of dollars above face in some cases merely reflects the uniqueness of the event
  • Jakub B on 27 Sep 13
     
    The author describes inelastic demand taking the Super Bowl as an example of pricing in many other sports.
  • Marenne M on 19 Oct 13
     
    This article describes how many sports events try to keep their prices low, in order to maximize attendance and thereby complementary costs such as food and parking. However, the Superbowl tickets are very expensive, and increasing in price. This is because they want to earn more money purely on ticket sales, and they believe they can make more revenue because the high prices only show how special this event is, which means there is a high demand to meet the high prices.
  • Marenne M on 19 Oct 13
     
    This article describes how many sports events try to keep their prices low, in order to maximize attendance and thereby complementary costs such as food and parking. However, the Superbowl tickets are very expensive, and increasing in price. This is because they want to earn more money purely on ticket sales, and they believe they can make more revenue because the high prices only show how special this event is, which means there is a high demand to meet the high prices.
John B

Drop in U.S. Jobless Claims, Rising Consumer Confidence Point to Recovery - Bloomberg - 2 views

www.bloomberg.com/...-000-last-week-to-388-000.html

Aggregate demand

shared by John B on 24 Mar 14 - No Cached
  • Fewer Americans filed claims for jobless benefits last week and consumer confidence stabilized
  • indicating strengthening sales in the U.S. and overseas are helping manufacturers like United Technologies Corp. (UTX)
  • We have an economy that is growing solidly,
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • A slowdown in firings and growing payrolls may spur further gains in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy.
  • report today showed orders placed with factories unexpectedly fell in February for the first time in four months, reflecting weaker demand for capital goods and military aircraft.
  • John B on 24 Mar 14
     
    This article is dealing with the economy in the U.S. It starts with stating that consumer confidence is stabilized, which could be because of the growing economy in the U.S. For example, the sales in U.S. and overseas are strengthen. One could also see from this article that the amount of people being fired from their jobs decrease which contributes to a growing consumer spending. Although, the demand for capital goods and military aircraft is becoming weaker.
John B

BlackBerry confirms loss of $965 million as sales drop 45% | Mobile - CNET News - 0 views

news.cnet.com/...-$965-million-as-sales-drop-45

demand

shared by John B on 27 Sep 13 - No Cached
  • BlackBerry offered few surprises as it posted a fiscal second-quarter loss of nearly $1 billion as its smartphones continued to struggle in the marketplace.
  • The official results come a week after BlackBerry released preliminary figures and said it would cut roughly 40 percent of its staff as it shifted its focus away from consumers and more towards business customers.
  • Its newer phones as a whole didn't seem to resonate with consumers. The company said it shipped 3.7 million BlackBerrys, but a majority of them were made up of BlackBerrys running older software, which remain popular in emerging markets because of their low price.
  • John B on 27 Sep 13
     
    This article is about how the BlackBerry phones are dropping in demand, and therefore the company have to "cut roughly 40 percent of its staff..." because of the loss of $965 million. When they have to cut down on he staff, it means that they can't afford the service that those workers can provide.
  • John B on 27 Sep 13
     
    This article is about how the BlackBerry phones are dropping in demand, and therefore the company have to "cut roughly 40 percent of its staff..." because of the loss of $965 million. When they have to cut down on he staff, it means that they can't afford the service that those workers can provide.
Amanda Anna G

Beer Store Monopoly's End Would Mean Higher Prices: Study - 0 views

www.huffingtonpost.ca/...re-prices-study_n_4760946.html

monopoly

shared by Amanda Anna G on 12 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • Ontario beer drinkers can expect to see prices rise if sales are allowed in convenience stores, according to a new study carried out for the province’s Beer Store.
  • The study, to be released Monday at the Toronto Board of Trade, says consumers can expect to pay about $10 more for a 24-pack of beer if the Beer Store’s monopoly ends.
  • The study says privatization in Alberta and British Columbia led to higher prices in those provinces. It also calculates that, if Ontario had followed Alberta’s lead on beer sales, the Ontario government would have missed out on $5.4 billion in revenue over the past 20 years.
  • Amanda Anna G on 12 Feb 14
     
    This is an interesting article about monopoly. In the article, it is argued that as beer also gets allowed to be sold in convenience stores and not only in the beer store which has been a monopoly of beer, then there will be a rise in price. The government argues that it would have gained revenue if sold in convenience stores, as a study said that privatization in Alberta and British Columbia led to higher prices in those provinces.
Aleksi B

Advancing the state of the art for in-ear headphones, at a lower price | The Audiophili... - 1 views

news.cnet.com/...ar-headphones-at-a-lower-price

Demand Headphone Custom made On Sale

shared by Aleksi B on 28 Sep 13 - No Cached
  • Advancing the state of the art for in-ear headphones, at a lower price
  • the JH-13 is nearly double the price of the V6-Stage, which is normally $699. Right now it's on sale for $599, but that offer ends October 1
  • Aleksi B on 28 Sep 13
     
    Shows and example of "Demand" and how selling the product for a lower price could result in more units sold.
Dina B

Colorado voters overwhelmingly approve state marijuana tax - 0 views

www.denverpost.com/...ow-heavily-tax-marijuana-sales

excise

shared by Dina B on 10 Nov 13 - No Cached
  • Dina B on 10 Nov 13
     
    This article talks about how voters in the Colorado state have voted to approve 'proposition AA' which imposes a 15 percent excise tax and an initial 10 percent sales tax on recreational marijuana. If proposition AA approves it it predicted to bring in $67 million a year. This shows how the government can put such a high excise tax on inelastic goods and people will still be willing to pay for it.
Amanda Anna G

Venezuela to toughen price controls, set profits - Yahoo News - 0 views

news.yahoo.com/rofits-122109181--finance.html

pirce-controls

shared by Amanda Anna G on 14 Nov 13 - No Cached
  • CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is extending price controls and will place limits on profits as he extends attempts to curb the galloping inflation that is eroding support for his rule.
  • Maduro made the announcement in a late-night television address Sunday in which he also vowed to step up inspections of businesses selling shoes, clothing, automobiles and other goods to make sure they aren't gouging consumers.
  • Amanda Anna G on 14 Nov 13
     
    In Venezuela, the president Nicolas Maduro has extended price controls to prevent the inflation that is (against) support for his rule. "We can't allow our hard currency to be used to rob people through the sale of these goods." he harangued businessmen he accuses of usury. This article relates to price controls and politics, and shows how price controls might look like when a country is ruled by dictatorship.
Haydn W

Coal India could have helped slash production cost by 12%: Power Companies - The Econom... - 0 views

economictimes.indiatimes.com/...28915293.cms

India Coal Energy Economic Times Production Costs Monopoly

shared by Haydn W on 17 Jan 14 - No Cached
  • KOLKATA: Coal India Ltd could have helped power companies save their production cost by 12%, or 35 paise a unit
  • The state-run monopoly coal supplier on Tuesday declared a dividend of Rs 29 a share.
  • CIL increased coal prices by a minimum 30% for all thermal coal used by power companies over the past three years
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • This enabled the company to increase its cash and bank balance from about Rs 45,000 crore during 2010-11 to Rs 62,000 crore in 2012-13,
  • Most of the additional reserves came from higher prices as production did not rise at the same pace. This fiscal year, the company is likely to miss its target on coal production by about 17 million tonnes and sales by some 15 million tonnes.
  • Power tariffs are regulated by Central and state regulatory commissions, however, coal prices are not. Every increase in coal prices leads to increased power generation costs which need to be passed on to consumers.
  • Haydn W on 17 Jan 14
     
    This article explains how production costs in India could have been cut if Coal India had kept prices lower. The article also tells us that the company has a monopoly on the industry and is state-run which has lead some people to criticise the government. The company has been accused of protecting its own interests by raising prices to cache its bank balance. 
Yassine G

BBC News - Intel to cut 5% of staff after forecasting no growth this year - 0 views

www.bbc.co.uk/...technology-25771760

intel forecasting growth demand Production Supply Revenues

shared by Yassine G on 26 Jan 14 - No Cached
  • which
  • Revenues
  • Revenues at
  • ...10 more annotations...
  • which
  • Intel's division which makes chips for desktop computers fell
  • s chips for desktop computers fell
  • % in 2013.
  • However, the company said there had been signs in the past few months that the PC sector was "stabilising".
  • For the full year 2013, the firm reported a net profit of $9.6bn, down 13% from a year ago.
  • Intel's chief financial officer, Stacy Smith, said the division's revenues in 2014 would probably come in toward the bottom of the previous estimate of 10% to 15% growth.
  • 'Bringing innovation
  • That included a 3D-camera technology, where one of its depth sensors could be used to interpret gesture controls and to separate foreground objects from the background.
  • It said laptops featuring the technology would go on sale this year.
  • Yassine G on 26 Jan 14
     
    this is a very interesting article that demonstrates the total revenues and how they can fall or raise, it also compares different years' revenues and shows us how intel plans to overcome the fall in revenue. 
Haydn W

Broadcasters failing to keep up with 3D TV demand - Telegraph - 0 views

www.telegraph.co.uk/...keep-up-with-3D-TV-demand.html

Demand The Telegraph 3D TV Technology Sales

shared by Haydn W on 28 Sep 13 - No Cached
  • 60 million 3D TVs are expected to be sold in 2013, and this figure is set to rise to 157.7 million by 2017, accounting for 58 per cent of all TVs sold across the globe
  • broadcasters' approaches to delivering 3D content differ widely
  • In the UK, with BSkyB has reaffirmed its commitment and Virgin Media increased its range of 3D broadcasting, while the BBC has postponed trials, which they have decided to conclude by the end of this year and will make no further 3D programmes for 3 years
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • 3D content will become increasingly restricted to premium and on-demand offerings.
  • the unique appeal of 3D to the consumer is that it offers greater immersion in content
  • A number of major broadcasters are now diverting investment to other initiatives, such as 4K and multi-screen content delivery.
  • Futuresource Consulting added that the market for 3D cinema remains stable.
  • Haydn W on 28 Sep 13
     
    This article shows how the demand for 3D TV's is increasing but broadcasters continue to not offer much 3D content to their viewers. 3D TV's were predicted by many to be a commercial failure, as the home experience is said to be not as good as the cinema experience but demand has continued to rise among consumers. Broadcasters however are not so keen to provide 3D content as they have their ever changing gaze to future investment in 4K technology in the continuous attempt to keep up with the relentless pace of modern technology.
  • Yassine G on 28 Sep 13
     
    I think that one of the reason that will not allow 3D technology to get popular is its very high cost. This is not only for consumers who are buying the TVs and Glasses, but also for producers. IT is an extra cost, without an extra profit.
Haydn W

BBC News - Royal Mail 'confident' after revenues rise - 0 views

www.bbc.co.uk/...business-25875092

Revenues Royal Mail UK BBC News Stock Market

shared by Haydn W on 26 Jan 14 - No Cached
  • Royal Mail 'confident' after revenues rise
  • Royal Mail has said it is "confident" about hitting its targets after posting a 2% rise in like-for-like revenues in the nine months to 29 December.
  • Parcel deliveries accounted for 51% of revenues, and chief executive Moya Greene said the firm handled 115 million parcels in December.
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • The postal service was privatised in October 2013.
  • Richard Hunter, head of equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers, said the update was "perfectly acceptable".
  • She said the company's European parcels business was doing well after exploiting "growth opportunities in the eurozone". Letter revenue fell by 3% on a like-for-like basis, the company said, as the impact of London 2012 collectable stamp sales waned.
  • Shares in Royal Mail closed down 2.6% at 572.5p, against a flotation price in October of 330p-a-share.
  • Mr Hunter said Royal Mail's shares had had a "very strong run" since October but that it may struggle to make "further meaningful progress" in the shorter term. The company was "simply a hold" for investors, he said.
  • Haydn W on 26 Jan 14
     
    This article from the BBC News website details how Royal Mail, the recently privatised public service has seen a 2% increase in revenues. Th controversial move triggered widespread uproar from opponents and share prices rose rapidly above the target when the company was floated in October 2013. This article shows that despite the move the firm has continued to make money and appears to be in no immediate danger.
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