Showing posts with label Dubai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dubai. Show all posts

Friday, August 21, 2015

Why You Should Go to Africa Instead of College

By Doug Casey

Recently Doug Casey was a guest on the always excellent podcast, The Tom Woods Show. Tom and Doug talked about the enormous economic potential in Africa, Doug’s efforts to build a truly free market country, and better uses of your time and money than going to college.

It’s an exciting and informative conversation.


Tom Woods: What a pleasure and a delight it is to welcome back to the show Doug Casey. Doug is a libertarian economist, best selling financial author, international investor, entrepreneur, and the founder and chairman of Casey Research. Doug, welcome back to the show.

Doug Casey: Thanks, Tom. It is my pleasure.

Tom: You’ve been up to some interesting activity in Africa that I’d like to ask you about. Let’s start off by telling us what you’ve been busy doing there.

Doug: Well, the last two weeks, I’ve been visiting the Islamic Republic of Mauritania with a short side trip to Senegal. I’ve been pursuing my hobby, which is to propose to a backward country a plan for complete and total free marketization… including taking the country itself public on a major stock exchange and distributing most of the shares directly to the people who theoretically own the government assets. I felt like I had Maria Muldaur’s “Midnight at the Oasis” playing in the back of my mind the whole time I was there.

Tom: Suppose you got everything you wanted, what would the outcome look like?

Doug: Well, 100% of all government assets, land, state owned companies - everything - initially go into a corporation and we distribute the shares.

Let’s say, 70% pro-rata to every man, woman, and child in the country, so they don’t just theoretically own the government, now they actually do. 15% would be put it in trust for the next unborn generation to defuse that time bomb. 10% would be distributed to people who, let’s say, are of significant help to making this happen, and people who are important, whose rice bowls would be broken, and 5% to take public in major stock markets to raise some capital. Then we get rid of all duties, taxes, and regulations.

Dubai was absolutely nothing in 1980. You know what Dubai is now. If we go back further, in 1960, Hong Kong and Singapore both were very poor and look what has happened to them. So I think in today’s world if somebody is daring enough to want to do this, I think it could be of world historic importance. So I’m looking for the right guy.

Tom: I’d like to get a glimpse inside of a meeting like this. If you’re sitting down with the president, you’re sitting down with top officials, how do you make that case, especially when the response is going to be, “What’s in it for me”?

Doug: Well, that’s always the first question, of course. I start my presentation with three things I can do for you, Mr. President. It’s always a question of the benefit to the buyer. Number one, this plan will make you legitimately a multibillionaire. That always goes down very smoothly, because they know that doing what Mobutu and Mugabe did doesn’t work quite as well now as it did in the past. So it gets their attention.

Number two, the people will love you and treat you as the new George Washington. That sounds pretty good too. Half the time in these places most of the population wants to kill them. And number three, we will put you on the front cover of all the world’s magazines in a favorable light for the next decade. Now that sounds good, because these people, if they are even known to exist, are considered pariahs.

So they always listen to the rest of presentation. Of course then things start to go wrong… usually from people under the president. It’s the people under the president who are usually making the big money, not so much the president himself. So they are often the problem.

It always makes for a fun adventure and interesting cocktail party stories that I can tell and retell to people for hours. But it’s my hobby. It’s not an occupation. I haven’t made any money on it yet, although I always have a plan B when I go to these countries: look for mining concessions and so forth.

Tom: Suppose you had to do it all over again. Let’s say you turned 18 in 2015. Have conditions changed to the point where you would take a different path, and incidentally would you go to college?

Doug: I would definitely not go to college. Even then, I only did it because everybody from my socioeconomic class was going to college, so there was no thought involved on my part. It was just like going from eighth grade into high school. I counsel students against it today. College serves no useful purpose unless you want to learn a trade like doctoring or lawyering or you need a piece of paper to practice a particular occupation, or there is a formal discipline, like a hard science or engineering.

You will pick up lots of bad ideas. You will spend a huge amount of money, get yourself under a huge financial rock that will take you years to dig yourself out from under. What I suggest people do instead is lay out what the most intelligent thing to do with that four years of time and probably $200,000 of capital. I like the idea of traveling. The place that I would put first and foremost on my travel list today for economic reasons is Africa. Go someplace where you can be a big fish in a small pond quickly.

Tom: Back in the ’50s and ’60s in the wake of decolonization in Africa, you had a bunch of Western educated semi-Marxist political leaders who were nationalizing property and confiscating assets from rich people and so on, you wouldn’t touch Africa with a ten foot pole. What has changed since then?

Doug: Well, politics always draws the worst kinds of people of course. Most of the presidents of Africa even today are ex-generals or ex-colonels or something like that. It has economically improved a lot. The population has exploded and it’s going to explode more in the years to come. It’s chaotic. But if you can bring order to chaos, that’s opportunity.

If you go to the Orient, there are a lot of rich, smart people there. You are not going to have much of a competitive advantage. That’s true to a lesser extent in South America too. Africa is actually the place, I think, you want to go.

Tom: Do you have any particular parts of Africa? I’ve heard good things about Botswana. Do you have any place in particular that attracts you?

Doug: Other than South Africa, I’d say Botswana is the most developed country in Southern Africa for sure. But where would I go now? Well, of course, the nice thing about Africa is that it’s divided basically into three parts, Anglophone Africa, Francophone Africa, and Lusophone Africa, and my French is still adequately conversational. I lived in France and Switzerland for a year during college. My Spanish is functional. The language thing is a consideration of course. But on the other hand, most of the educated people in most countries of the world speak English, which is the world’s lingua franca today.

Where would I go? There are around 50 countries in Africa. I like small, obscure ones. Maybe Ghana is too developed. Look at Benin or Togo or maybe the Ivory Coast. Mauritania, where I just was, is actually quite interesting. Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry, you’ve got lots of choices. Somebody should get on a plane and just take a look. Then when they get into a country, a capital city, which is always where the action happens, get on the telephone to local lawyers and real estate agents and businessmen to set up appointments and see who you can get along with. One thing will lead to another.

I wouldn’t go to Africa as a lifestyle choice. I would go there for economic reasons and for the adventure that it would yield. I’d say as a lifestyle choice, it comes down to South America or the Orient. I lived in the Orient for years and I loved it.

Tom: What about the language barrier?

Doug: Well, I lived in Hong Kong and when I was there it was much more English. Of course everybody in China is learning English today, everybody, everywhere that you basically would want to talk to. I’m not trying to be elitist but the educated people - put it that way - all speak English today as a second language. This is one of the things that will slow down your progress on learning the local language, is that they all want to speak English to you. So that’s a double edged sword… but it’s really an advantage. No, don’t worry about the language problem.

Tom: Well, I sure appreciate your time, Doug Casey. You are the International Man himself, and we are always grateful for your time.

Doug: Well, thank you Tom. It is a pleasure to talk to you under any circumstances.

Editor’s Note: International Man is all about helping you make the most of your personal freedom and financial opportunities around the world. A great way to get started is to check out Going Global 2015. Normally, this book retails for $99. But we believe this book is so important, especially right now, that we’ve arranged a way for US residents to get a free copy. Click here to secure your copy.

The article was originally published at internationalman.com.


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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Puerto Rico’s Stunning New Tax Advantages

By Nick Giambruno, Senior Editor, International Man

Chances are that you have heard something about the stunning new laws in Puerto Rico that give unbelievable tax benefits for mainland Americans who move to the island. Benefits that are so incredible that many at first thought they were simply too good to be true…...but they most certainly are not.


With strategies that purport to legally allow US citizens to avoid having to pay taxes, the first thing that usually comes to mind is some sort of cockamamie scheme. This is because the US government is no slouch when it comes to shaking down its citizens. It’s mind boggling expenditures necessitate this. It would be dangerously foolish in the extreme to think you could slip one past them.

However, the tax benefits of becoming a resident of Puerto Rico are not an illusion, nor some type of scam. They are very real, 100% legal, and could change your life. That is not hyperbole. They have already changed the lives of many. These benefits are why scores of mainland Americans have already made the move—including two members of Casey Research. Many more have seriously considered it. To spur job growth and economic activity in general, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico introduced extraordinary tax incentives for incoming residents and service businesses.

Specifically, for Puerto Rican residents and businesses that qualify—mostly expatriates from the U.S. mainland or their enterprises—the recently enacted Act 22 and Act 20 provide for a zero tax rate on capital gains and certain interest and dividends earned by individuals, and for low single digit tax rates on qualifying service income earned by corporations operating in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico is no novice at sculpting tax rules to attract foreign investors and expatriates. For decades the country has offered tax incentives to many types of businesses, especially manufacturers, which is why today you’ll find plants belonging to Praxair, Merck, Pfizer, and other big names dotting the island’s lush interior.
Due to the ever-increasing extra-territorial regulations they are forced to comply with, many countries and foreign financial institutions are showing American citizens the “unwelcome mat.” Puerto Rico, on the other hand, is a newly tax-friendly jurisdiction that is—and will continue to be—open to Americans.

One accountant who specializes in offshore structures remarked, “This is the biggest opportunity I’ve seen in 25 years.”

He’s right: this is truly an astounding and unique opportunity for individual Americans; there is no other way to legally escape the suffocating grip of these taxes besides death or renunciation of U.S. citizenship. This is because the US is the only country in the world that taxes its nonresident citizens on all of their income regardless of where they live and earn their money. For this reason, an American who moves to a zero tax jurisdiction like Dubai, for example, still pays a full U.S. tax bill. A Canadian expat working in Dubai would have no income tax bill at all.

Note: The US does exclude up to $99,200 of foreign earned income (salary, wages, etc.) from taxation if certain conditions are met, but there is no break for an overseas American’s investment income.

American are in the uniquely unfavorable position of having arguably the worst tax policies and a government that can effectively enforce them. For many, it is a tight and suffocating tax leash. It is no wonder, then, why record numbers of Americans are giving up their citizenship to escape these onerous requirements. Even if you do decide to take the plunge and renounce your US citizenship, there’s a good chance you’ll get stung with the costly exit tax and also may have trouble reentering the US.

There is, however, another way, thanks to the new options in Puerto Rico. American citizens can effectively gain many of the tax benefits of renunciation without actually having to do so. Due to Puerto Rico’s situation as a commonwealth of the U.S., its residents are not subject to US federal income taxes from income generated in Puerto Rico.

Previously this did not make any practical difference, because although Puerto Rican residents are not subject to U.S. federal taxes, they are subject to Puerto Rican taxes, which are often at similar levels to those on the U.S. mainland. However the situation has changed immensely, with the two powerful, new laws that exempt new Puerto Rican residents from certain key taxes from the Puerto Rican government.
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Anyone who relocates to Puerto Rico can apply for these tax incentives—including mainland U.S. citizens, who can find similar benefits nowhere else in the world, thanks to the island’s unique legal situation.

Casey Research has done a thorough boots on the ground investigation and found that the tax advantages are real and that for many Americans, including individuals operating on a modest scale, they are a huge opportunity that could truly be life changing. The findings were recently published in a comprehensive A-Z guide on the Puerto Rico option. Click Here to Learn More.


The article Puerto Rico’s Stunning New Tax Advantages was originally published at Casey Research



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Thursday, July 11, 2013

Platts: ICE Brent futures lose previous quarter's premium to NYMEX WTI, Dubai

After a strong performance at the beginning of the year, the forward Brent complex lost some of its strength to WTI and Dubai crude futures in the second quarter of 2013 on a combination of European demand woes and stronger East and West crudes.

The narrowing of the spread between the ICE Brent futures and NYMEX light sweet contract, known as Brent/WTI spread, was a notable change in the quarter.

Dated Brent ($/Barrel): January 2 - June 28, 2013


Toward the end of June, the ICE Brent front-month futures contract narrowed its premium to front-month NYMEX crude to below $6/barrel, more than halving from the beginning of the quarter. (A trend which of course has continued, with the spread tumbling below $5/b and even $4/b in just the first three days of July.)


Here's a short video in which John Carter shows how he trades oil and how he identifies targets when to take profit.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Bloomberg: Contango on Mideast Oil Disappears on China Diesel Squeeze

The 1 month old contango in Dubai oil, the benchmark grade of crude for Asia, has disappeared as a shortage of diesel in China puts a premium on the quickest deliveries of fuel. The December contract was 15 cents a barrel more expensive than January’s today, reversing a discount that’s been in place since July 2009, according to data from PVM Oil Associates, a London based broker.



A shortage of diesel in China is pushing up the premium for the fastest deliveries of oil as the nation curbs power use under a plan by Premier Wen Jiabao to cut electricity consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent in the five years through 2010. Stockpiles in the country, the world’s biggest energy user, fell for a seventh month in October, according to data from China Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals, a publication of the state owned Xinhua News Agency.

“China’s got to be short” of crude oil, said Alex Yap, an analyst at FACTS Global Energy in Singapore. “If they want to do any restocking from November to December, they’ll have to be importing a lot for the next couple of months.”

Oil imports dropped 30 percent to a 17 month low of 16.4 million metric tons in October, or about 3.9 million barrels a day, the General Administration of Customs said Nov. 22. Diesel inventories declined 11 percent to about 6.2 million tons in October, data from Xinhua News showed on Nov. 22. They were 11.5 million tons in February......Read the entire article.


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Monday, December 14, 2009

Phil Flynn: Dubious Dubai


Dubai gets a bailout and the risk appetite tries to come back but oil is still being held back by a load of supply. Supply gluts put oil back into a rut on signs that OPEC is cheating more each day. OPEC compliance to production targets fell to just 58% which is the worst score for the cartel since the financial crisis began. The biggest cheaters were Iran and Angola but also, believe it or not, Nigeria's production has come back much faster than expected after the country was plagued with rebel attacks on its infrastructure.

The reasons for the cheating on production quotas within OPEC are varied. There is the greed angle but part of it is there are those who actually want to purchase the oil. Oh sure it is easy to comply with your production targets when there are no buyers for your oil but not so much when you can actually find some buyers.....Read the entire article.


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Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Crude Oil Rises as Chinese Manufacturing Growth Accelerates


Crude oil rose after a report showed Chinese manufacturing expanded at the fastest pace in five years, bolstering hopes that fuel demand will increase in the world’s second biggest energy consuming country. Oil advanced as much as 2 percent after the purchasing managers’ index for China, released today by HSBC Holdings Plc, rose to a seasonally adjusted 55.7 from 55.4, the highest since April 2004. OPEC oil output climbed 0.4 percent to 28.9 million barrels a day last month, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

“The Chinese manufacturing number is very strong and points to higher energy demand in the months ahead,” said Phil Flynn, vice president of research at PFGBest in Chicago. “The Chinese headlines were enough to outweigh reports that OPEC is increasing production.”

Crude oil for January delivery gained $1.05, or 1.4 percent, to $78.33 a barrel at 10:05 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures touched $78.85, the highest since Nov. 23. Prices are up 76 percent this year. Oil tumbled 2.5 percent on Nov. 27 after Dubai World, a government investment company burdened by $59 billion of liabilities, sought to delay repayments. The company has begun what it described as “constructive” talks with banks to restructure $26 billion.....Read the entire article.

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Phil Flynn's Market Report: Oil Prices Surge on Reports of Somalian Pirates, Iran


Sometimes a crisis can make the market go up and sometimes down. The Dubai Crisis knocked oil out of its old trading range only for Pirates and the Iranians to knock us back into it. How does the old poem go? Carry trade and go away, sell again some other day. The carry trade is back in vogue as the Dubai crisis gets put behind us and the Iran crisis is now ahead of us. Oil prices started to rebound to the lower end of the old trading range back above the old breakout point of 75 dollars. Yet oil surged late on a report that British sailors were taken into custody by Iran.

Iran went on a temper tantrum as their buddies Russia and China voted to censure Iran in a strongly worded chiding by the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency. They lashed out and said not only would they not stop working on their clandestine nuclear plant but they would build 10 more. They also threatened to hold their breath until they turn blue. When the global markets failed to pay attention to their bluster maybe that is when they decided to take some hostages.....Read the entire article.

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Monday, November 30, 2009

Crude Oil Rises as U.S. Business Activity Gains a Second Month


Crude oil rose after a report showed that U.S. business activity gained for a second month, bolstering optimism that the economic recovery in the world’s biggest energy consuming country will accelerate. Oil rebounded after the Institute for Supply Management Chicago Inc. said today its business barometer increased to 56.1, the highest level since August 2008. Readings above 50 signal expansion. Prices dropped earlier as Dubai’s government said it hasn’t guaranteed the debt of Dubai World, a state controlled company struggling with $59 billion in liabilities.

“These are very good numbers,” said Jason Schenker, president of Prestige Economics LLC, an Austin, Texas based energy consultant. “Any number above 50 points to an expanding U.S. economy and that’s very good for oil demand.” Crude oil for January delivery increased 37 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $76.42 a barrel at 11:07 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures are up 71 percent this year. Economists projected the Chicago index would drop to 53, based on the median of 53 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.

Oil in New York declined 2.5 percent on Nov. 27 as Dubai World’s attempt to reschedule its debt bolstered the dollar. “The dollar is weakening again, which is giving oil support,” said Tom Bentz, a senior energy analyst at BNP Paribas Commodity Futures Inc. in New York. “Any big dip in prices is being seen as an opportunity to get into the market”.....Read the entire article.

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Sunday, November 29, 2009

Oil Rises on U.A.E. Backing for Dubai’s Banks, Weaker Dollar


Crude oil rose in New York after the United Arab Emirates’ central bank said it “stands behind” the country’s banks, easing concerns about a possible default by Dubai World. Oil gained as much as 0.9 percent after the Abu Dhabi based U.A.E. central bank said yesterday lenders will be able to borrow using a special facility tied to their current accounts. The dollar declined against the euro, bolstering the attraction of commodities as an alternative investment.

“The market is still coming to terms with the implications of the Dubai debt scare for oil,” said Toby Hassall, research analyst with CWA Global Markets Pty in Sydney. The move by the U.A.E central bank could be a “positive sign,” he said. Crude oil for January delivery gained 45 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $76.50 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:09 p.m. Sydney time. It earlier dropped as much as 0.3 percent.....Read the entire article.

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Friday, November 27, 2009

Crude Oil Futures Tumble to Six Week Low on Dubai Debt Crisis


Crude oil in New York fell to the lowest level in six weeks as Dubai’s attempt to reschedule its debt bolstered the dollar and prompted investors to sell commodities.
Oil dropped as much as 7.1 percent as the U.S. currency climbed, dulling the appeal of raw materials as an alternative investment, and equities tumbled. Dubai World, the government investment company burdened by $59 billion of liabilities, sought to delay repayments, raising concern that worsening defaults may hold back the global recovery.

“The situation in Dubai revives worries about the recovery of the economy,” said Adam Sieminski, chief energy economist at Deutsche Bank AG in Washington. “The strength of the recovery has an obvious and immediate impact on both oil demand and prices.” Crude oil for January delivery declined $2.28, or 2.9 percent, to $75.68 a barrel at 12:09 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures touched $72.39, the lowest since Oct. 12. On a closing basis the market is heading for the biggest drop since Nov. 12. New York oil futures didn’t settle yesterday because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Floor trading and electronic trading will end at 1:45 p.m. today, instead of the normal closures at 2:30 and 5:15 p.m......Read the entire article.

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Monday, July 20, 2009

Halliburton 2Q Earnings Plummet, Beat Expectations


Halliburton said Monday its second quarter profit tumbled 48 percent as sluggish exploration and production activity, particularly in North America, crimped results. Its earnings beat Wall Street forecasts, though the company offered little hope for an uptick in drilling before year's end. The oilfield services company, which has corporate headquarters in Houston and Dubai, said net income for the April-June period fell to $262 million, or 29 cents per share. That compared with $504 million, or 55 cents a share, a year ago.....Complete Story

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