Posts by Gareth Ward

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  • Hard News: Theories, please ...,

    In that case Gareth, I'd like the same tax treatment for my individual share portfolio.

    Yup, agreed - but the PIE change took us closer to consistency in some ways...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Theories, please ...,

    Under the old regime, index funds did not pay tax on capital gains, because they were not trading for income. (NZ doesn't have capital gains tax, remember; just tax on income). Managed funds did pay tax on capital gains, because they were deemed to be trading for income.
    ...
    But instead, PIE funds now pay no tax on capital gains in NZ or Australian shares no matter how they are managed. In other words, I personally would pay income tax if I traded shares for income, but as a shareholder in a PIE, I wouldn't. (In fact worse than that, because PIE income is taxed at 33%).

    I regard this as an effective subsidy for managed fund managers.

    Stephen the flip side of that argument (and the way I have viewed it until your argument there) is that the change minimised the number of "trading entities" that were treated differently. Should the varying degrees/types of management involved in active vs passive index tracking really be taxed differently? Simply because they choose their share makeup with different methods?

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Monster Weekend,

    And completely apropos of nothing, Heath Ledger dead at 28. Bugger -- twenty eight is far too young to die, full stop, let alone of a suspected overdose of sleeping pills.

    It is, nonetheless, a popular age to die famous: Hendrix, Janis, Jimbo ...

    But yeah. Bummer.

    And in an unfortunate linker back to the rude t-shirt comment, someone else on the internet mentioned how they had seen a t-shirt recently that read:
    Jimi, died at 28
    Janis, died at 28
    Jim, died at 28
    Britney, 27 and the countdown's begun.

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Theories, please ...,

    Re Krugman - I've often had issues with his style but have found it hard to fault the conclusions and suggestions that he comes with. I was "lucky" enough to attend a talk of his at the height of the Asian Paper Tiger collapse where he expounded some out-there but undoubtedlty deeply thought-through ideas on imposed negative inflation and the like. Certainly a smart man, and I like one of the underlying messages in that link - knee-jerk reactions to cyclical recessions are an appalling idea, especially long-term tax cuts (which would presumedly last beyond any economic cycle and therefore independent of any recessions). Measured stimulus to cushion exteremes in the economy is OK, but lets remember that recession is part of the cycle.

    Also, there's a potential dark cloud in the silver lining of our sharemarket's "relative" resistance to the fall - that we are just not integrated enough into the global economy for a synchronous recession in Europe and the US to have a large impact on our firms. Hooray for now but that highlights a rathing worrying lack of "skin in the global business game" (blech, how I could I write that?)

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Monster Weekend,

    we got back home in pretty good time

    I certainly have to give to props to the organisers - years of experience really seems to have nailed the logistical side of things. While I admittedly got there late and left just as Rage were ending, I was amazed that a sell-out crowd in heat like that was able to move around so easily.
    I had no idea how I was going to get home, yet walking out the back of the Boiler Room to actually being home in Grey Lynn (via a brilliantly organised on-site city bus service and a walk over Hopetoun Bridge) was slightly under 40 minutes. That's pretty smooth...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Notes for a Big Day Out,

    Without re-hashing all the other good points made, the best act was surely Tommy 'Tan Tan' and Cool Wise Men.
    We popped out of LCD Soundsystem to check out Rage, got Bulls on Parade ticked off so headed back to the Lilypad where these cats were playing - Cool Wise Men are a reggae/funk/calypso set of 20-something Japanese guys and Tommy 'Tan Tan' is one of the original Jamaican trumpeters .
    Only heard the last three songs of their set but it was magic - having come from a brief taste of Rage's, well, rage, the 4piece horn section and hammond calypso sounds was quite the contrast. There was only about 2 dozen people dancing there with maybe the same lying around on the grass but it was enough - and Mr Tan Tan, who must be in his 60s at least, still managed to gesture the lovely young ladies backstage at the end of it...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Notes for a Big Day Out,

    Tips for transport for those of us with a job what won't be able to get away until 5ish? I'm presuming train = best, guess I'm facing a long "commute" at that time of day regardless though huh...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • OnPoint: Summer of Shadbolt,

    Gareth - it depends what law he's trying to break.

    Right, and I just now noticed their lovely weasel wording on it: Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt plans to break the new election finance laws
    Which I suppose he does, even if he's not going to...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • OnPoint: Summer of Shadbolt,

    Surely, if one wants to demonstrate these new "attacks on freedom of speech" it is the *new* bits that should be highlighted, not the old bits

    And surely the Herald shouldn't be able to misreport exactly that:

    Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt plans to break the new election finance laws this month in a bid to force a test case in the courts.

    While I think even they are going to back away from their support on this one, you'd think they'd have the editorial decency to point out such a base fact...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

  • Hard News: Rockin',

    While it was great news that there were no serious injuries (although guy-with-broken-leg may question that statement) the photograph of smashed 42 below at Soho was quite hard to take this morning...


    And I should add a Merry Christmas back to you - yourself and others here have held me as an enthralled lurker for a while, with hands-down the best commentary in the country. And you've even managed to drag the odd post or 17 out of me.
    So cheers for helping refine someone's political (and other) views through reasoned discussion as opposed to hysterical loud-hailering - it's a notable service.

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report

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