Transfer Pricing

Transfer pricing refers to the rules and methods for pricing transactions within and between enterprises under common ownership or control. Because of the potential for cross-border controlled transactions to distort taxable income, tax authorities in many countries can adjust intragroup transfer prices that differ from what would have been charged by unrelated enterprises dealing at arm’s length’. According to Rogers and Oats (2022), ‘The arm’s length principle (ALP) is the basis of the tax transfer pricing rules in most
countries and is used to determine an arm’s length transfer price: the price that would be used if the same transaction were undertaken by unrelated third parties’.

Transfer pricing can be used as global strategic intervention for companies’ to shift income of one affiliate to another affiliate located in an overseas jurisdiction’ ‘to maximize firm value using their international business structure’ ( Yoo, 2020).


Further Open resources on Transfer pricing
Rogers, H., & Oats, L. (2022, January). Transfer pricing: changing views in changing times. In Accounting Forum (Vol. 46, No. 1, pp. 83-107). Routledge.

Yoo, J.S., 2022. The effects of transfer pricing regulations on multinational income shifting. Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics29(3), pp.692-714.

World Uncertainty Index (WUI)

World Uncertainty Index (WUI). It covers 143 countries—all countries in the world with a population of at least 2 million. It goes back in time, providing data for the past 60 years. The index uses a single source for all countries, which allows us to compare the level of uncertainty across countries. And it captures uncertainty related to economic and political events, regarding both near-term (e.g., uncertainty created by the United Kingdom’s referendum vote in favor of Brexit) and long-term (e.g., uncertainty engendered by the impending withdrawal of international forces in Afghanistan, or tensions between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea) concerns. Read more

Currency Hierarchy and the Nature of the Internationalisation of
Peripheral Currencies

Currency internationalisation, often defined by the use of a local currency beyond the national frontier, has been a topic widely discussed in the literature. The recent rise of currencies from emerging market economies in the international market has suggested that some peripheral currencies have become more internationalised. However, their position in the currency hierarchy, which is formed by the US dollar at the top and other central currencies in an intermediate position, has remained the same.

Read more >

Orsi, B., Kaltenbrunner, A., & DYMSKI, G. (2020). Currency Hierarchy and the Nature of the Internationalisation of Peripheral Currencies. Mimeo.

Cars are dying and are in danger of becoming extinct.

Last week, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) recorded its consecutive annual decrease in car ownership in more than 100 years even as the number of cars on the road rose by 0.4%. New car sales are skewed towards sales of Electric cars (EV)-which recorded a spectacular 71% growth, but on the whole the car industry is in trouble.

The industry itself is seeing a massive disruption from several VUCA driven forces forcing customers to hold on buying new cars. The average age of the UK passenger car fleet has risen to over 12 years partly due to an alignment of the pandemic induced VUCA pause on buying new cars to a number of forces, converging on the Industry. Philip Nothard  defines this VUCA as “new vehicle production problems, primarily caused by semiconductor shortages and coronavirus restrictions, disrupted the wholesale and retail vehicle markets”.

An Increase in new technologies and government led disruptive cycles have created ripples through established car consumption and manufacturing cycles which make cars extinct. Some of these disruptive VUCA forces are :

(a) A move towards electrified powertrains to support the development of sustainability mobility ecosystems that help cities . While laudable as a shift towards mitigating some of the effects caused by our use of cars, one must remember that electrified powertrains have been around for as long as the internal combustion engine. In 1835, Thomas Davenport had demonstrated first practical electric vehicle ever to be conceived and a number of electric car companies were born. The Electric Vehicle Company consortium who wanted us to use electric cars as early as 1899 when Daimler started building racing cars using  internal-combustion engines. But then, electric powertrains lost to the Internal combustion engine! For over a century, Governments, fossil fuel companies, global economic inequalities and the complicity of regulators failing to check emissions from the internal combustion engines while simultaneously and vigorously defending its inclusion as a primary locomotive force, contributed to climate change.

But this is changing now, to the chagrin of the established car ecosystem.

Electric cars now dominate mainstream automobile narratives in this decade, as governments worldwide, use it now as a buzz word. Electric cars and climate change are synonymously linked to deflect history’s painful lessons in sustaining and abetting the abuse of the earth. We use non- electrified automobile locomotion as a whipping post on which our collective sin of using cars are to be flagellated and expunged. Governments use this narrative to smooth over a century’s apathy. Not having the right, efficient government policies which may have tackled the pollution and emissions caused by cars is been driven under the carpet as cars are seen as an impediment to climate change mitigation. The case of Birmingham trying to forget history is a moot point here.

The tensions in the Industry are rising as governments push through a new frenzied narrative to decarbonize the planet by killing off legacy car power trains. This decarbonisation narrative is particularly dangerous for the car as it sits at the centre of a climate influenced maelstrom of politically sensitive lifestyle interventions. These lifestyle interventions come at great economic costs to Car ecosystems. Car companies are increasing their R&D spend on EVs as they innovate to survive in a new world. Even icons like the Lamborghin Aventador V12s or the Lotus Evora GT have lost the race to live as internal combustion vehicles(ICVs). In a world where transition to a low carbon economy is key, car manufacturers have to face a new financial risk of having to manage their responses to climate change or else see a major creditworthiness disaster. Car manufacturers also need to hedge their best on EVs as other competing technologies like bioethanol and hydrogen mature. Economic costs have already seen a flurry of mergers and consolidations in the industry due to electrified powertrains.

Other major challenges include emission pricing and carbon tax on cars, spend on Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) technologies, a fall in all in the global market for internal combustion vehicles(ICVs) coupled with the cost of retooling factories for EV car production and the the national interest of Governments worldwide to concentrate economic activity with a 15-minute city.

But then electric car companies are not the panacea as claimed and have also failed; Fiskers (2013) spectacularly burning through $2bn before failing, Faraday Future, Dyson, Bright Automotive, AMP, Aptera, Coda, Detroit Electric, LeEco…. the list goes on and on. Electric cars will further the legacy of ICVs if we don’t have build enough, low cost and accessible charging infrastructure. In addition, there are claims that electric power trains are not fully renewable as “Lithium, nickel and cobalt are the three major components in rechargeable batteries that are, by definition, nonrenewable resources”. A global shortage of semiconductor chips compounds the shift towards electric cars.

(b) New consumer behavioural patterns have come into play. Cars are no longer been seen as lifestyle statements and climate change is staring us right in the face. An outbreak of equine influenza in North America in October 1872 caused a major shift from the horse as primary source of mobility to ICVs. In 2019, a similar pandemic caused by Covid 19 and subsequent global lockdowns, have forced a rethink on the use of the car.

Like flight shame, we are awakening to the very real possibility of car shaming. It only takes a social media storm before we all get sucked into avoiding the use of cars and choosing slower modes of travel like biking as major life style changes. And its happening. Car manufacturers including BMW, Ford, Honda, Jaguar Land Rover and McLaren have failed to stop a ban on the sale of pure internal combustion engine cars from 2040 to 2030 while cities like Oslo and Madrid are forcing us to choose between cars and public transport. Our collective use of public transport has picked up significantly alongside increased consumption on shared modes of transport (especially micromobility services.

Another change has hit the use of a car. Car brands, particularly luxury cars have acted as status symbols for the buyer, delivering a higher perceived value for  buyers looking to maximize their investment and also created an aura of exclusivity for its owners through effective brand management. But in 2021, after 2 years of lockdown, visiting a car showroom has lost its appeal to many consumers; Digital interactions are now the new norm and customer experience is trumping luxury as more people want a “new tech-led, data-rich, electric vehicle instead of mere luxury cars.

(c) A car-less future is feasible for many of us, but risks becoming a nightmare to manufacturers. Laura McCamy’s post on embracing a car-less life is appealing to a generation that in in tune with climate change , saving money and staying fit through pedalling.

Car parking costs is another major incentive to go car-less. As early as 2005, UCLA professor Donald Shoup brought out an understated aspect of owning a car ,- Cars remain parked for over 92% of time. How amazing that our collective experience of the automobile and its position in society, revolves around a small amount of time, when a car is actually useful to its owner! It’s the con of the century that we cannot see how big, parking a car plays in the true cost of car ownership? The RAC estimated in 2012 that car parking had contributed to the loss of over 7 million front gardens . This report also tells us that in 2012, “the average car is parked at home for 80% of the time, parked elsewhere for 16% of the time and is only on the move for 4% of the time

Car parking however is highly contested ;Governments derive a huge revenue boost from the business of parking yet must try and . In the UK, the RAC estimates that “Councils in England made a combined surplus (profit) of £891 million from parking in 2019-20” while globally the business of parking had grown annually at 11% with total revenues of US$4.23 billion. Yet car parking is driving governments away from its its commitment to managing climate emergency. Some recent contrarian  components of a UK government led, balanced transport strategy is incentivising the shift away from individual car ownership and making walking, cycling and public transport more attractive. Parking levies, a National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)  and the Road to Zero policy paper are some examples.

Finally Cars are dying. Manufacturers killed off car brands that were no longer viable. In 2022, Honda’s Acura RLX (or the Honda legend in some markets) was put down having sold only 1019 cars in 2019 from a hey day of selling over 70K cars annually. Honda also culled the Honda Clarity in both hybrid and fully electric versions. Other brands that died in 2021 were the Alfa Romeo 4C that may have been a victim of a new step parent’s love. This year, BMW killed off its I3 electric car- a victim of  its limited EV range while Polestar 1 joined the list of also ran EVs. Even Rolls Royce has joined the killing spree removing the Dawn and the Wraith.

It’s time to take the slow road now, pedalling our way to the brave new world. Until of course we decide to change our collective narrative and forgo the shame of using cars. Remember how glorified diesel was twenty years back? Perhaps the car ecosystem will decide someday in the future that a clunky, vibration centred, rubber burning, fumes blenching car, is still the way forward. Maybe the industry will save cars by offsetting car emissions through liquefying carbon and recycling it.

One is comforted by a recent news that even the Dodo has made a comeback after been wiped out in the 17th century.

This post will be continuously updated.

Data sources:
1. https://www.hotcars.com/defunct-car-manufacturers-we-hope-will-make-a-comeback/
2. https://stacker.com/stories/5360/50-car-companies-no-longer-exist
3.https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/industry/remembering-britains-failed-car-companies-picture-special
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_automobile_manufacturers_of_Europe
5. https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/blog/climate-change-reshapes-the-automobile-sector
6.https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/07/electric-cars-batteries-fossil-fuel/
7.https://www.motor1.com/features/297044/discontinued-cars-trucks-suvs-20189/

The SIC code

The Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) is a system for classifying industries by a four-digit code. Established in the United States in 1937, it is used by government agencies to classify industry areas. The SIC system is also used by agencies in other countries, e.g., by the United Kingdom’s Companies House. It was developed by the Interdepartmental Committee on Industrial Statistics, established by the Central Statistical Board of the United States who developed the List of Industries for manufacturing, published in 1938, and the 1939 List of Industries for non-manufacturing industries, which became the first Standard Industrial Classification for the United States

In the United States, the SIC code has been replaced by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS code), which was released in 1997. Some U.S. government departments and agencies, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), continued to use SIC codes through at least 2019. The SIC code for an establishment, that is, a workplace with a U.S. address, was determined by the industry appropriate for the overall largest product lines of the company or organization of which the establishment was a part. The later NAICS classification system has a different concept, assigning establishments into categories based on each one’s output.

In the UK, Companies House uses a condensed version of the full list of codes available from the Office of National Statistics >>> The current Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) used in classifying business establishments and other statistical units by the type of economic activity in which they are engaged.

Additional resources
History of the Standard Industrial Classification Scheme [PDF]
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) System
SIC Manual

Data sources:
1.wikipedia
2.companieshouse.gov.uk/sic/
3.https://guides.loc.gov/industry-research/classification-sic

Industry Research and Reports

Free Industry Reports From Salience

annual market reports cover the online performance of over 60 industries within retail, finance and B2B. Salience manually collect and curate data, spending 100+ hours to create each one and draw meaningful conclusions for brands in that space. The result is a PDF jam-packed with industry trends & analysis, winners & losers and brands to watch, all for free.

Food and Drink Report

A Santander Bank report

State of the Cruise Industry 2021

Cruise Lines International Association
(CLIA), the leading voice of the global
cruise industry, has released the annual
2021 State of the Cruise Industry Outlook.
Following a year unlike any other in the
history of the industry, this report offers a
look at the trends and analytics propelling
the cruise industry forward in the coming
year and beyond

2021 US wine business-predictions and

observations

Read here

The Future of the EU

Automotive

Sector

This study provides an independent overview of the automotive
industrial landscape in the EU. Specifically, the study assesses
green and digital trends currently reshaping the automotive
sector and provides recommendations considering the adequacy
and consistency of ongoing and future EU actions.

An Economic Impact Analysis of the U.S. BiobasedProducts Industry

This report was prepared for the USDA BioPreferred®
Program.

Travel and Tourism report 2021

For 30 years, the World Travel & Tourism
Council (WTTC) has been quantifying the economic impact of Travel & Tourism, highlighting
the importance of the sector to the global economy. The 2021 annual research which covers
185 countries and economies, and 25 regions of the world, reveals the full extent and significance of
the COVID-19 crisis to the sector in 2020.

The geographical structure of capitalism at the origin of cultural protest against globalization as expressed in contemporary politics of identity

In a large number of countries, fundamental shifts are taking place in the balance of power between political parties or movements. In nearly all cases, the nature of political discourse underlying national politics has changed radically, the politics of identity having now become prominent. We argue that the failure of capitalism to bring about universal prosperity is at the origin of the rise of this type of politics. It fails to secure decent living conditions for unskilled workers in the core states of Western Europe, and it fails to secure opportunities for social mobility for the equivalent of the European middle-class in the (semi)peripheral states. An analysis of three cases of politics of identity that have the connotation of civilization – Islamism, Hindu nationalism and extreme right-wing nationalism in Europe – corroborates this view. These three cases of politics of identity appear to be related to a crisis of legitimacy. However, this does not imply that Islamism and Hindu nationalism are the non-Western equivalents of extreme right-wing nationalism in Europe. The former are phenomena of the periphery, the latter is a phenomenon of the core.

Read the article here

Is the Exit from Capitalism Ahead?

This analysis by David Bollier from the United Nations University, introduces the debate around production and consumption as a central flagpole to which literature around capitalism has been pegged. It is interesting to note that David also introduces the notion that too much capital is available from companies that do not seem to have sufficient investment opportunities that can generate profits. In other words, ‘the amount of capital available is far greater than the real economy’.

Read the article here
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