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​The CBRE Group, Inc. trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CBRE.” is the world’s largest commercial real estate services (2018). Their recently released study "Scoring Canadian Tech Talent" provide insights into how the growth in demand for tech talent is impacting cities and real estate markets across Canada. ​ CBRE Report Snippets Record commercial and residential real estate demand and an office construction boom in several markets. High-Tech sector GDP growth = 3x the pace of the overall economy over last 5 years. Tech industry accounts for 17.1% of major office leasing activity since start of 2018. Immigration policies have produced an abundant, accessible source of tech talent.  Top Canadian universities produce highly educated tech workers in specialized fields eg: AI research and multimedia production.  U.S. companies can tap into high quality talent at a less prohibitive cost when accounting for the discounted CAD$.

The foundations of the APT tax proposal—a small, uniform tax on all economic transactions—involve simplification, base broadening, reductions in marginal tax rates, the elimination of tax and information returns and the automatic collection of tax revenues at the payment source. The APT approach would extend the tax base from income, consumption and wealth to all transactions.

Think about the desirability and feasibility of replacing the present system of personal and corporate income, sales, excise, capital gains, import and export duties, gift and estate taxes with a single comprehensive revenue neutral Automated Payment Transaction (APT) tax.

In its simplest form, the APT tax consists of a flat tax levied on all transactions. The tax is automatically assessed and collected when transactions are settled through the electronic technology of the banking/ payments system.

The APT tax introduces progressivity through the tax base since the volume of final payments includes exchanges of titles to property and is therefore more highly skewed than the conventional income or consumption tax base.

The wealthy carry out a disproportionate share of total transactions and therefore bear a disproportionate burden of the tax despite its flat rate structure.

The automated recording of all APT tax payments by firms and individuals creates a degree of transparency and perceived fairness that induces greater tax compliance. Also, the tax has lower administrative and compliance cost.

If we want to take on the challenges of the 21st century, ie: the urgent generational "moonshots" facing us, then tech sector - take on the challenge of tax reform. 

"The global financial crime wave is no accident Financial crime is a feature of our global financial system not a bug." said pioneering economist Susan Strange. ​November 28, 2018 by Naomi Fowler

Financial Secrecy Index - 2018 Results

Canada ranks 21 out of 112 jurisdictions after Switzerland (1), the USA (2) and the Cayman Islands (3).

​“Canada and the U.S. are the two most lax jurisdictions in the world when it comes to the rules for preventing the incorporation of anonymous shell companies. What’s more, corporate service providers operating in those two countries are less compliant than those operating in Ghana, Lithuania, or Barbados, and follow laxer rules than those in Malaysia or the Cayman Islands.”

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​"Chinese Yuan makes up a lower portion of global reserves than the British Pound and even the Swiss Franc, and is just ahead of Canada." Hat Tip to ​@anilvohra69 for the note and graphic in my Twitter feed. US dollar credit to non-bank borrowers outside the United States grew by 4% year on year  to reach $11.9 trillion at end-June 2019. This represents a slight acceleration relative to the 3% annual growth rate observed at end-2018. Bank of International Settlements  October 2019 ​Foreign borrowers of USD denominated debt is accelerating. What gets borrowed in USD has to be repaid in USD and as the USD rises in value, so does the demand for USD. I update my USD vs CAD Canadian Housing Price chart as well as my Canadian Household Debt  chart every month. Our chronic negative Canadian Balance of Trade means that OUR debt obligations continue to provide more stimulus to offshore than onshore producers.​ A rising USD is not good for most Canadians.

INVESTOPEDIA KEY TAKEAWAYS, July 2019
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> A dollar shortage occurs when a country spends more U.S. dollars on imports than it receives on exports.

> Since the USD is used to price many goods globally, and is used in many international trade transactions, a dollar shortage can limit a country's ability to grow or trade effectively.

> Most countries try to maintain a reserve of currencies, like U.S. dollars or other major currencies, which can be used to buy imported goods, manage the country's exchange rate, pay international debts, or make international transactions or investments.​

​Pierre Trudeau’s Washington Press Club speech
“Living next to you is in some ways like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered is the beast, if I can call it that, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.” Pierre Elliot Trudeau, the March 1969 speech to the Washington Press Club.