Bangladesh and India are close to sign a tax treaty

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India and Bangladesh are close to signing three agreements, including a protocol to amend the avoidance of double taxation treaty, which is expected to give a major boost to bilateral trade, said officials at the Indian foreign ministry yesterday.
The most important of the three agreements is the Double Taxation Avoidance Taxation Convention protocol, which will amend the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement. The agreement has been in place since 1991.
Considerable progress have been done on the three deals since last Tuesday's meeting of the Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) here, where Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes and his Indian counterpart Ranjan Mathai led their respective delegations.
At the meeting, Mathai conveyed India's willingness to see early signing of the three agreements.
New Delhi has taken a positive view of the trajectory the India-Bangladesh relations has taken of late, including a flurry of meetings on infrastructure in June to examine infrastructures at land customs stations and the proposed Border Haats.
A meeting to review the line of credit was held last month in New Delhi with the purpose of fast-tracking implementation of the projects. Shipping secretaries of the two countries decided to renew the protocol on inland water transit and trade by a further two years.
The two sides are cooperating in facilitating the return of mortal remains of the freedom fighters of 1971. Recently, a delegation from Bangladesh was in India to discuss modalities with concerned ministries and state governments.
The joint technical committee, set up to explore the possibility of electricity trade between Bangladesh and India and to recommend associate transmission systems on both sides of the border, met recently.
India regards the outcome of these meetings and the sustained engagement between the two sides on substantive and specific issues of mutual concerns as having added a momentum to the bilateral relations.

India, Indonesia discuss South China Sea, ink tax treaty friday

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Indonesia and India inked a treaty on avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and discussed strategic bilateral and regional issues.
External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and his Indonesian counterpart Marty M Natalegawa co-chaired the fourth meeting of the India-Indonesia Joint Commission and identified specific areas in which both countries would be working together to take the relationship to the next high level.
"Prior to the Joint Commission Meeting, Foreign Minister Marty and I had very useful discussions on the current status of our bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and international issues,"said Krishna to press meeting interaction with his Indonesian counterpart.
Natalegawa said efforts were on by the ASEAN countries to come out with a code of conduct for the South China Sea after the disappointment at the recent ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Philippine-Germany Tax Treaty Up

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The Philippines and Germany concluded the final round of negotiations on the revision of the agreement for the avoidance of double taxation with respect to taxes on income and capital.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the new tax treaty have the scope to protect against the risk of double taxation where the same income is taxable in the Philippines and Germany.
It is also aimed at preventing fiscal evasion and fostering cooperation between Philippine and other tax authorities by empowering their respective tax laws. An effective international tax treaty is expected to facilitate trade and investments.
“This new tax treaty will provide German investors with certainty and guarantees in the area of taxation,” Philippine Ambassador to Germany Maria Cleofe R. Natividad declared . “It will bolster our economic diplomacy efforts here in Germany.”
Bureau of Internal Revenue Commisioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares led the  Philippine delegation during the negotiations. The other persons included in the delegation were Undersecretary Carlo Carag of the Department of Finance, Assistant BIR Commissioner Marissa Cabreros, Atty. Charadine Bandon of the BIR International Tax Division, and Director Mersole Mellejor of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Ambassador Natividad represented the Philippine Embassy during the negotiations. She was joined by Third Secretary Azela Arumpac and Finance Attache Generosa Balocating.
The German delegation was headed by Dr. Wolfgang Lasars of the Federal Ministry of Finance. He was assisted by Ms. Simone Richter, a senior tax expert from the same Ministry, and Mr. Heinz-Josef Johansmeier, a legal expert from the Federal Foreign Office (FFO), Mr. Sven Green (FFO) and Ms. Nadine Lichtblau of the Federal Ministry of Economy and Technology.
All outstanding problems were resolved during the last round of negotiations, with both parties agreeing on the adoption of new standards in the tax treaty.
The Philippine and German delegations agreed to ensure early completion of their respective domestic requirements for the ratification of the new treaty. The new agreement is expected to be signed in Germany , first period of the next year.
Germany is an important economic partner of the Philippines. From January to November 2011, total trade was valued at $2.9 billion, with Germany as the biggest export market for Philippine goods in Europe.
German companies operating in the Philippines include Continental Temic, Siemens, Lufthansa Technik, Daimler Benz, BMW, Bayer, and Bosch.

Bethel Finance: Strong growth at Teva as Yanai era ends

www.bethelfinance.com Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) reported strong growth in revenue and profit for the first quarter of 2012, as CEO Shlomo Yanai left the company today. Teva reported net revenue of $5.1 billion, up 25% from $4.1 billion in the corresponding quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP profit was $1.3 billion ($1.47 per share) up 39% from $900 million (1.04 per share) in the first quarter of 2011. Teva president and CEO Shlomo Yanai said, “After five extremely rewarding years as Teva’s CEO, I will be stepping down today. It has been an immense privilege to lead Teva’s outstanding global team through such an exciting period. Together we turned Teva into a highly diversified global pharmaceutical company, with an expanded geographical footprint and additional lines of business. Over the last few months I have had the great pleasure of working closely with my successor, Dr. Jeremy Levin, to ensure a smooth transition. I am very confident that Jeremy will lead Teva to even new heights and I wish him every success.” Commenting on the results Yanai said, “2012 is off to a good start for Teva. We enjoyed a quarter of strong growth for our branded products, in our US generics business, and in the developing markets Teva operates in. All of these served to offset weaker generics sales in Europe, which resulted primarily from the macro-economic conditions in that region." Revenue in the US in the first quarter of 2012 was $2.8 billion (54% of total revenue), up 46% from the first quarter of 2011, as a result of strong revenue of both generic products, including the launch of seven new products not sold in the first quarter of 2011, and branded products, primarily due to the inclusion of Cephalon. Revenue in Europe in the first quarter of 2012 was $1.3 billion (26% of total revenue), down 2% from the first quarter of 2011, but up 3% in local currency terms. Revenue in Europe benefited from the inclusion of Cephalon products and sales synergies following the successful integration of the acquisition, as well as stronger revenue from branded products, primarily Copaxone. Revenue in the rest of the world (including Canada, Israel, certain markets in Eastern Europe, Latin America and Asia) in the first quarter totaled $1 billion (20% of total revenue), up 21% from the first quarter of 2011. In local currency terms, this revenue grew 23%. The growth in revenue resulted primarily from the inclusion of Taiyo and Cephalon, as well as from a strong performance in Eastern Europe, Latin America and Israel. Branded products revenue in the first quarter was $2.1 billion, up 54% compared to $1.4 billion in the first quarter of 2011. The increase in branded products revenue was mainly due to the inclusion of Cephalon sales (mainly Provigil with $291 million in revenue, Treanda with $148 million and Nuvigil with $84 million). Most of Teva’s major branded products also had strong revenue. Global revenue recorded by Teva for multiple sclerosis treatment Copaxone rose 8% to $909 million from $838 million in the first quarter of 2011. Global in-market sales of Copaxone rose 4% to $941 million. Azilect revenue recorded by Teva rose 9% to $72 million, while global in-market revenue rose 7% to $96 million. Teva will distribute a cash dividend for the first quarter of 2012 of NIS 1.00 per share. The record date will be May 21, 2012, and the payment date will be June 1, 2012. Tax will be withheld at a rate of 25%.

Bethel Finance: Moody's cuts Israel's banking outlook to negative

www.bethelfinance.com International ratings agency Moody's has downgraded its outlook for Israel's banking sector from "Stable" to "Negative." According to Moody's the new outlook reflects the expected slowdown in growth, and the challenging environment expected in Israel over the next year to 18 months. The report said, "The banks' capital metrics are tight relative to those of global peers. The weakness in the Israeli corporate-bond market poses credit risks for the quality of assets the banks hold because of the banks' high credit concentrations in domestic corporate conglomerates." The report added that Israel's environment will continue to be challenging with GDP growth expected to slow significantly in 2012 mainly sue to lower exports due to the insoluble crisis in Europe. In addition, the report cited the growing geo-political tensions related to Iran and neighboring countries, which are likely to further lower business confidence and economic activity. Moody's also believes that the risks in the credit sector will continue due to rising returns on corporate bonds challenging the ability to finance corporations.

Bethel Finance: Shekel stays flat against dollar and euro

www.bethelfinance.com The shekel is again flat against the dollar and euro in inter-bank trading today as concerns over the crisis in Europe and the French and Greek election results persist. The shekel-dollar exchange rate rose 0.19% this morning, compared with yesterday's representative rate to NIS 3.809/$, and the shekel-euro exchange rate fell 0.04% to NIS 4.951/€. On global markets the dollar continued to strengthen against the euro to $1.298/€ but fell against the Japanese yen to ¥79.74/$. The shekel has not been adversely affected by the decision of Moody's to lower the outlook of Israel's banks from "Stable" to "Negative." Regarding international currency trading Prico CEO Yossi Freeman said, "The strengthening of the dollar against the euro and investors concerns about the political change in France alongside uncertainty about the future of the Greek government have will continue to contribute to the weakness of the euro and the strengthening of the dollar, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen. In the short term there is no change in our belief that the dollar has not yet fulfilled it strengthening potential against the shekel. However, the shekel remains restricted in its movement above previous levels. In the medium term, we believe the shekel will again strengthen."

Bethel Finance: Tel Aviv Municipality approves Saturday minibuses

www.bethelfinance.com The Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality today approved a plan to operate seven new sherut (private minibus services) routes, which will operate across the city, including on Saturday. The Ministry of Transport will have to approve the plan. Tel Aviv councilwoman Tamar Zandberg (Meretz) proposed the plan. She said today, "I am proud that my proposal has been approved. Functioning public transport every day is the norm worldwide, and we should not accept anything less. The time has come to update the status quo.' Zandberg said that polls taken in 2010 showed broad support for the measure. 62% of Tel Aviv residents and 93% of secular Jews support the operation of public transport on Saturdays. Zandberg said, "40% of Tel Aviv-Jaffa's residents do not own a car, and cannot travel one day in seven. These residents are stuck, grounded, unable to travel beyond walking or cycling distance on their day of rest. Continuous transport is essential for a sustainable city. This is a social act of the first order and we're ready to fight for our rights, up to the High Court of Justice if necessary." The new routes are as follows: Hatayism terminal in east Tel Aviv to the city center; lines from south Tel Aviv to Jaffa; lines from east Tel Aviv via Jaffa to the seashore, the Tel Aviv Port, the Exhibition Grounds, and Kiryat Atidim; lines from northeast Tel Aviv to the city center and Jaffa; and lines from the Central Bus Station via the city center to the northern neighborhoods.