27 December 2018 FT — Articles to Read

27 December 2018

 

Question: According to MSN: Money, what are sixteen (16) commonly missed tax deductions?

 

Chinese groups rush to list in US despite escalating trade tension – Pg. 1

–          The US this year recorded the most initial public offerings for Chinese companies since 2010 in spite of a trade war between the two countries that threatened the cross-border flow of goods and upset financial markets

–          The number of US IPOs by Chinese companies was well ahead of 17 in 2017 and the most since 39 listings in 2010

–          Equities worldwide have had a punishing end to 2018 as concerns about the US-China trade war and global growth slowdown have prompted selling

–          Retail sales in China grew at the slowest pace in 15 years in November, while factory output was the weakest in nearly three years

–          Competition for Chinese deals is heating up.  The Hong Kong stock exchange in 2018 changed listing standards to allow dual-class shares and opened the doors to biotech businesses that have yet to generate revenue

 

Trump presides over slowdown in business regulation – Pg. 2

–          …Trump has overseen a sharp slowdown in the pace of new business regulations in his first two years in office…

–          …passed less than half the number of economically significant rules that Barack Obama did in his first two years as president, and 25% less than George W Bush did over the same period

–          His administration has also made some progress in taking rules off the books – one of the president’s main campaign pledges – with some studies suggesting it has surpassed Mr Trump’s target of eliminating two existing rules for every new one that comes in

 

Ecommerce puts warehouses back on the map – Pg. 10

–          Rents for industrial real estate – a category that largely comprises warehouses – are rising at double-digit rates in more than a dozen US markets

–          Vacancies are at historic lows and new investors are piling into the sector even as other parts of the property sector are softening

–          In some ways, the warehouse boom is the flipside of a retail property market blighted by bankruptcies and store closures as shoppers move online.  Demand is so intense that in some markets developers have taken the once-unheard-of step of tearing down office properties to convert them to warehouses

–          …companies are now seeking abundant warehouse space to their customers to manage an ever-growing volume of “last mile” deliveries that must be made on ever-tighter deadlines

–          Developers built a record 9m sf of new warehouse space in the state in 2017 and will surpass that with 10m sf this year.  Rents that averaged just $5.10/sf in 2012 have since jumped to $8.47/sf

 

Answer: (1) Job hunting expenses; (2) Pet moving costs; (3) Self-employment expenses; (4) Child and dependent care costs; (5) Smoking cessation costs; (6) Weight-loss expenses (Prof Note: Paying taxes is a thing of the past for me! J); (7) Charitable travel costs; (8) Breast surgery expenses; (9) Pregnancy test expenses; (10) Wig costs; (11) Sales and Income Taxes; (12) Student Loan Interest; (13) College tuition and training costs; (14) Energy-saving home improvements; (15) Mortgage points and remodeling costs; (16) Military reserve travel costs