finance | banking | taxes

Congolese mines minister mum on whether controversial new code has been made law

7-Feb-2018 Business Day

International mining companies, which include Randgold, Glencore and China Molybdenum, have said they will challenge the new law through international arbitration, and are lobbying Kabila not to sign it.

Lawyers ask for prompt decision on Lone Star case

9-Jan-2018 Korea Times

Lawyers for a Democratic Society sent a letter to the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes, demanding a speedy settlement of the dispute between the Korean government and the U.S. buyout fund Lone Star Funds.

India’s top court allows Vodafone to initiate second arbitration over $2 bln tax demand

14-Dec-2017 Reuters

India’s top court allowed Britain’s Vodafone to initiate a second arbitration process under an India-UK investment pact .

EU-Japan trade agreement not compatible with EU data protection

11-Dec-2017 FFII

The implicit cross-border data flow commitments do not have a sufficient safeguard. This is not compatible with the EU Fundamental rights system.

T.N. seeks to stay Nissan arbitration

5-Dec-2017 The Hindu

The Tamil Nadu government moved the Madras High Court for an interim stay on carmaker Nissan Motor from proceeding with international arbitration over the alleged non-payment of incentives being claimed by it from the State.

Nissan sues India over outstanding dues; seeks over $770 million

1-Dec-2017 Reuters

Japanese automaker Nissan Motor has begun international arbitration against India to seek more than $770 million in a dispute over unpaid state incentives.

NZ ’could not’ apply water tax - diplomat

30-Nov-2017 Radio NZ

Government plans to put a royalty on exports of bottled water could be in jeopardy after a top trade negotiator warned MPs it would breach trade deals.

Singapore may renegotiate EU trade deal after Brexit removes British markets

21-Aug-2017 Independent

Singapore has raised the prospect of renegotiating terms on a long-awaited free trade deal with the European Union due to the impact of Brexit

US and China sign trade agreement

13-May-2017 BBC

The US and China have reached a 10-point trade deal that opens the Chinese market to US credit rating agencies and credit card companies.

Why Singapore doesn’t want to see a HK-ASEAN free-trade deal

27-Apr-2017 Ejinsight

Once the ASEAN opens its service sector to Hong Kong companies, Singapore could be the hardest hit, and hence its staunch opposition to it.

EU to exclude financial services from post-Brexit deal

27-Apr-2017 EU Observer

The EU intends to exclude the financial services sector from a trade deal with the UK after Brexit, according to the latest tweaks in the EU’s draft negotiating guidelines.

TiSA and the threat to public banks

25-Apr-2017 TNI

The Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) is an attack on the future publicness of public banking around the world.

Britain puts banks at front of queue for US trade deal

14-Apr-2017 The Telegraph

British banks could be able to access the US markets in future as freely as they trade with the EU now, under a trade deal

Australia’s march towards corporatocracy

20-Feb-2017 The Conversation

While consultancies, political donations, secondments and staff movements magnify corporate influence over government, an equally sinister trend is playing out in the world of multinational corporations.

TiSA - draft annex on financial services (Nov 2016)

29-Jan-2017

From November 2016 negotiating round