本帖精华送给小杀妹宝贵的经验分享，详见“推荐回帖”。 by 神猴
周三经管来了，今天是五一假期的最后一天，做完小分队作业就好好休息咯，加油~
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Article 1 (Check the title later)
Pakistani Voters are Concerned about Economy
[Time 1]
Pakistan is preparing for national elections next month, many likely voters seem more concerned about the economy than stopping militant violence.
But few Pakistanis are hopeful for changes. Zafar Saeed directs an occupational training centre in Islamabad, the capital. For the past ten years, the centre has trained thousands for work in an increasingly difficult economy. Now his own business is struggling from power cuts and inflation, he blames the government for the situation.
"Our organization has suffered major financial losses, particularly over the past five years, because prolonged power outages have not allowed us to perform our activities. The other main reason is inflation because people can no longer afford to pay for their fees to learn income-generating skills.”
Many people share his opinion. Street protests against power cuts are common in Pakistan. Some cuts can now last all day long.
Ashfaque Hassan Khan is a professor at the Nast Business School in Islamabad.
"We are facing economic challenges and the reason for this is that for five years the economy has never been on the radar of the government.”
He also says part of the problem has been too little political will to fix the national tax system. Less than one percent of Pakistan’s 180 million people pay income taxes. About 70 percent of federal lawmakers did not complete any income tax documents last year, most of them are likely to be returned to parliament in the elections.
[240 words]
[Time 2]
As professor Khan notes, that makes it more difficult to ask the country's major donors for help.
"There is a genuine complaint from [the] international community because their taxpayers have started raising questions that 'why should our government give our taxpayer money to Pakistan when [the] Pakistani government doesn’t tax their own rich and influential people?'”
60 percent of the Pakistani population is under the age of 25. Recent opinion surveys show most young people are concerned about unemployment, power shortages, and corruption.
Maleeha Lodhi is a former ambassador to the United States. She says young people have grown less hopeful about the future.
"So, the message to Pakistan’s next government is a very strong one. And that message is deal with the economy otherwise young people will opt out of the system and when young people opt out of the system and lose faith then frankly, the future prospects for any country begin to look very bleak."
To build support among young voters, some political parties are promising to reduce unemployment, and fight corruption. However, opinion surveys have shown low ratings for politicians, this is why voters like Zafar Saeed are wondering whether the next government will be any different from the last one.
[205 words]
Source： http://www.51voa.com/VOA_Special_English/Economics_Report-49535.html
Article 2 (Check the title later)
Yum Brands' China flu might be difficult to shake.
[Time 3]
The fast-food giant reported a 41% year-on-year fall in operating profit at its China division in the first quarter, contributing to an 8% fall in earnings per share. Much of the blame goes to negative publicity on food safety following reports in the Chinese media at the end of 2012 of excessive use of antibiotics by the firm's suppliers.
The feathers from that scandal have settled. But an outbreak of avian flu in China's Yangtze River Delta means Yum's problems are not yet over. Avian flu is not transmitted through properly cooked meat, but Yum's KFC still suffers from guilt by association. Management expects China same-store sales to decline 30% year-on-year in April, worse than the 20% fall in the first quarter.
Two food safety crises in quick succession are a reminder that operating in China's fast-food sector is a risky business. China's agricultural sector is fragmented, with millions of small farmers─fertile ground for food-safety problems. Insulating against the risks is expensive and no guarantee that problems can be avoided. The beady eye of China's state media can amplify problems.
A sharp rise in competition adds to Yum's ailments. Yum's sticking with plans to add 700 new stores in China this year, on top of the 5, 726 it already has. But McDonald's is also planning to add more than 300 restaurants in 2013. Yum still outnumbers its rivals, but in some malls it now finds itself jostling for space with McDonald's, Subway and cheaper Chinese outlets.
Last year's food safety scandal triggered a bout of nausea for investors, with Yum's share price falling 9.9% on a single day at the end of November. Worries over bird flu have so far had little impact. But if Yum's China complaints are chronic rather than acute, the share price could have further to fall.
[304 words]
Source： http://www.putclub.com/html/dailyfocus/kaleidoscope/2013/0425/70031.html
Article 3 (Check the title later)
China's Tourist Are Now The Top Spenders
[Time 4]
With their matching hats and bullhorn-equipped tour guides, Chinese tour groups may not win many style points, but according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization they’re doing more than anyone else prop up the global tourism industry.
China’s spending on outbound travel swelled to $102 billion last year, a 40% jump from 2011. That surge sent China screaming past Germany and the U.S. ─ the former No. 1 and No. 2 spenders, respectively ─ which both saw tourist outlays increase 6% year-on-year to around $84 billion in 2012, the UNWTO said in a statement on its website.
Thanks in part to growing disposable incomes and an easing of travel restrictions, 83 million Chinese citizens left their country in 2012, up from 10 million a decade ago, the UNWTO said.
The rise of the Chinese travel market has big implications for businesses, with everyone from airlines and hoteliers to luxury brands and banks already beginning to change their strategies to attract China’s well-heeled tourists. Hotel chains like the Hilton and cruise operators like Royal Caribbean have begun rolling out special Chinese services such as Vivienne Tam slippers and $50, 000 industrial-sized woks for better noodles. American Express recently teamed with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to launched special electronic travelers cheques for the Chinese market.
Even lesser-known businesses like the South Coast Plaza shopping mall in southern California have started adding payment services and Mandarin-speaking concierges so that Chinese travelers can pay with their country’s credit cards and get advice from personal stylists in their own language.
Many Chinese tourists plan their travel specifically with shopping in mind, as taxes on luxury goods boost price tags by 30% to 50% in China. The price difference often causes some purchases overseas to surpass those at home. In an August survey of 1, 200 Chinese shoppers by consulting firm KPMG, 51% of the shoppers said they bought watches in Hong Kong, Taiwan or Macau during the 12-months prior to August 2012, while only 31% said they had bought one within China’s borders during that time.
[346 words]
Source： http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2013/04/05/move-aside-germany-chinas-tourist-are-now-the-top-spenders/
Article 4 (Check the title later)
Holiday season grates on economic growth
[Time 5]
No matter how Congress resolves its fiscal issues, one thing it won’t be able to get back is the economic boost that normally comes from consumers during the holiday season.
For proof of the humbug that the so-called fiscal cliff is spreading this holiday season, one need look no further than two consumer confidence/investor optimism measures released Tuesday.
The Investors Business Daily Economic Optimism Index fell by 7.2% in December, having moved from a positive bent to a pessimistic tone just two months ago. While the poll shows that investors remain upbeat about their own personal finances, they are nervous about the six-month economic outlook and lack confidence in federal economic policies.
The IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index typically does a good job foreshadowing the results of better-known consumer-confidence measures released later in the month by the University of Michigan and The Conference Board.
Meanwhile, the Consumer Reports Index reported a sharp decline in sentiment among affluent Americans — those earning $100,000 or more — the first time the index has seen the normally positive vibes of the wealthy households fall in line with the lower-income masses.
If consumers aren’t feeling the “ho-ho-ho” of the holiday season, they’re not spending “mo’-mo’-mo.’” Tidings of discomfort are likely to translate to no joy for the retailers and others who depend on fourth-quarter revenues to “make the year.” That does not bode well for some small businesses, a vital engine for job creation and retention in an economy desperate for more employment opportunities.
At this point, no matter when or how the politicians resolve the fiscal cliff issues (or don’t), it’s probably too late to inject much feel-good into the holiday season. Retail numbers may look better, but that is most likely due to the post-Thanksgiving holiday this year being the maximum number of days possible.
Instead, it’s increasingly clear that big-picture worries have given consumers a pre-holiday hangover, and that means bigger headaches for the economy come January.
[325 words]
Source: http://articles.marketwatch.com/2012-12-11/commentary/35741055_1_consumer-confidence-fiscal-cliff-holiday-season
[Obstacle]
Article 5 (Check the title later)
Is sales tax on e-books, iTunes next?：Tax-free digital content’s days may be numbered
Most online purchases will be subject to sales tax under the law under consideration in Congress. But there’s one big exception: digital books, music, or any other content composed of ones and zeros.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos holds the Amazon tablet the Kindle Fire on Sept. 28, 2011, in New York City. Scheduled to be voted on May 6 in the Senate, the Marketplace Fairness Act, would mark the beginning of the end of tax-free shopping for clothing and electronics. Supporters say it will help put an end to “showrooming” — where people visit physical stores to shop for items they later purchase online — while critics contend it will hurt e-commerce and small Internet companies.
The legislation would put the onus on vendors — instead of consumers — to pay tax on online purchases made on sites like Amazon.com AMZN -7.24% , eBay EBAY +0.34% and smaller e-commerce companies. The Marketplace Fairness Act doesn’t specifically mention digital content, but leaves interpretation up to state law. “It does not change what digital goods are subject to state sales tax,” says Rachelle Bernstein, vice president of tax for the National Retail Federation, “but it does require companies to collect that tax.”
By some counts, nearly half of U.S. states already tax some digital content. Washington state introduced a specific tax on digital goods in 2009 for music, movies and e-books, as did Kentucky, Vermont and Wisconsin. Texas, Arizona and Maine rely on existing laws by defining digital goods as “tangible personal property,” even though it’s transmitted electronically. Most states don’t include magazines, newspapers or digital services like online dating in those laws. And in some states, such as Florida, e-books are tax-exempt, but not TV shows and movies.
Given the potential revenue on everything from e-books to apps, more taxing of digital content may be inevitable. “There’s no question more states will see it as a source of more tax,” says Brian Kelleher, tax director with accounting and consulting giant Deloitte. U.S. e-book content revenue is expected to reach $3.19 billion by 2015, according to Deloitte. Consumers will download 56 billion apps in 2013, ABI Research estimates. “We’re seeing a movement of states to tax digital content,” says Ferdinand S. Hogroian, legislative counsel at the Council on State Taxation, a nonprofit trade group.
Some retailers say the law will level the playing field. “Government should not pick winners and losers with the tax code,” says Jason Brewer, a vice president at the Retail Industry Leaders Association. “Retailers should be treated equally.” Amazon.com has an increasing number of factories in states across the country to make same-day deliveries and, analysts say, would have to tax sales in those states anyway. Amazon supports the bill, Paul Misener, vice president of global public policy for Amazon, told a Senate Commerce Committee in August.
But e-books shouldn’t be taxed along with a pair of skis or garden furniture from Amazon.com, says Steve DelBianco, executive director of NetChoice, a coalition of e-commerce firms like Yahoo YHOO -2.06% and News Corp. NWSA -0.16% , owner of The Wall Street Journal and MarketWatch. “Downloads can’t be resold, gifted or traded, and they’re often of lower quality than physical copies.” Some states are already grappling with such complexities. New Jersey introduced a sales tax on e-books, music and even ringtones in 2006, but apps and other custom-made software for business use was excluded.
The Marketplace Fairness Act only applies to online retailers with “remote” sales exceeding $1 million a year but some companies selling digital goods fear the costs of collecting such a tax would make business untenable or discourage them from growing. “Does anyone believe that $1 million in sales is a big retailer?” DelBianco says. Smaller companies say it would force them to sell their wares through the websites of giants like Amazon.com and Wal-Mart WMT +0.50% . “Online retailing is already a razor-thin margin business,” says Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords.com, a publisher of self-published e-books.
To be sure, some states have been slow to pass legislation that would impose tax on digitally content. But that trend seems to be changing as seven states have considered bills this year. Digital content remains exempt from sales tax in major states including New York, Florida and California, but taxes have been proposed in Ohio, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Louisiana. Lawmakers in California — the home state of Facebook, Apple and Google — introduced similar bills to introduce a digital tax in recent years. “More states are guarding the tax base against erosion,” Hogroian says.
[795 words]
Source： http://www.marketwatch.com/story/senate-spares-e-books-from-sales-tax-2013-04-26
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发表于 2013-5-1 20:57:01
