Inflation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 3

Inflation - Essay Example As inflation is directly proportional with the aggregate demand in an economy and also the money supply, governments encourage a certain rate of inflation to prevail in an economy for gradual growth (Edwards, 1984). Prior to setting up of a business or preparing the annual financial budget for the economy, inflation is always taken into account. Measures are taken to control inflation so as to leave room for investment, global competitiveness and local demand in the economy. Therefore, attaining price stability through controlled inflation has always been one of the major concerns for all economies (Hart, 2010). Inflation is caused through various factors. It is however difficult to conclude as to what factor has precisely led to inflation and by how much. The forces of demand and supply and other factors concurrently result into inflation and the government has the tools of fiscal and monetary policy to control these factors simultaneously. The major causes of inflation can be because of a demand shocks, supply shocks, money supply and exchange rates, and future expectations (Mishkin, 1984): Inflation is directly proportional to the aggregate demand in an economy. This is because, when the economy is at its growth stage, there are more employment opportunities. As more people are able to work, households’ incomes rise giving them more purchasing power. This causes a rise in the aggregate demand. As the aggregate demand curve moves to the left, the producers also have to increase their supply to exploit this rise in demand. As they increase their production/extend their supply, their costs of production increase which results into an increase in the price level. This Demand-pull inflation can be so intense that it can also cause a Stagflation where an economy reaches at a stagnant growth with high unemployment and high inflation rates. (Martin, 1985). In contrast with Demand-Pull Inflation, Cost-Push Inflation is

Conventional insurance and mutual or co-operative insurance Essay

Conventional insurance and mutual or co-operative insurance - Essay Example This paved way for the development of Takaful form of insurance that is Shariah compliant. Mutual risk arrangement Takaful envisages transfer of risk on mutual basis under which arrangement are the participants and operators. It is almost similar to conventional mutual risk sharing such as Mutual Insurance and Indemnity Club (P and I Club). The difference between Takaful and conventional insurances lies in the manner in which risk is managed and Takaful fund is operated. There are differences in relationships between the operator and participants who represent the insurer and insured respectively in the conventional insurance. The management of risk refers to the way risk is assessed (underwriting) and handled. Unlike conventional insurance, uncertainty, speculation (gambling) and interest elements are prohibited in Islamic life and the Takaful insurance is free from these vices known as Gharar (uncertainty), Maisir (gambling) and Riba (interest or usury). (Iqbal, 2005). In order to be free of Gharar, a Takaful contract must be subject to full disclosure from both sides so that there is complete clarity. The full disclosure or clarity should be in respect of the subject matter and terms of contract. If there is any unknown element or unknown exposure, Takaful contract cannot be entered into. But since this ideal situation does not always exist, Takaful contract ensures that there is at least no exchange of Gharar among the parties to the contract (Iqbal, 2005). Prohibition of Maisir (gambling) that is an extreme form of Gharar does not allow risk transfer on speculative basis. Riba, another prohibited element, is avoided by treatment of contribution from the participants as part of risk sharing scheme and not as a premium in conventional insurance. In Takaful, the contribution is envisaged as Mushahamah in the form of donation with a condition of Tabarru (compensation). Further, under Takaful, the funds so collected should be managed and invested following Shar iah principles (Iqbal, 2005). Islam does not prohibit risks as they are a reality. It only prohibits trading on risks. Islam does allow mutual help in any situation including when some misfortune strikes. Both the forms of insurance deal with risks but in a different manner from each other. Under conventional insurance, risks from various insured persons are transferred to the insurer by insured against exchange of premium collected by the insurer. On the other hand, under Takaful risks are shared by the participants (insured) by contribution to fund under a mutual guarantee scheme to be managed by Takaful operator Wakeel (agent). Thus, there is no risk transfer to the operator in Takaful insurance. The conventional insurance actually exchanges uncertainty for certainty. The uncertainty relates to whether or not loss will occur and if at all it occurs, when it will it occur and what will be severity of loss like and how many such losses are likely to occur within a given period. The conventional insurance envisages payment of fixed premium by the insured to insurance company who in turn will pay the loss if it ever occurs within ambit of policy terms. This exchange of uncertain loss is Gharar in Islam and hence not allowed. Therefore, the Takaful avoids risk transfer by the participants (insured) to the operator. This facilitates sharing of risks by among the participants under what can be called a mutual

Caffeine - Red Bull Essay Example for Free

Caffeine Red Bull Essay How many of you drink energy drinks? Just one a day or a few a day? Did you know that while only one a day may not lead to excessive caffeine intake, two or more in a single day can? Excessive amounts of caffeine intake can lead to headaches, jitteriness, and upset stomachs. Kentucky is thinking about passing a law to make it illegal for someone under 18 to buy energy drinks. Many people (including me) want this law to be passed. When I did my research on this issue, it was found that in France some forms of energy drinks are banned because of their role in sports-related deaths. In one case a young athlete died after drinking 4 cans of red bull before playing a basketball game. Your thinking â€Å"How do we know that it was because of the energy drinks? † Well, we know this because this is not the only case in which an athlete has died after drinking energy drinks. If people under 18 are allowed to buy energy drinks then there will most likely be more deaths. So why should people under 18 be allowed to buy energy drinks? They don’t understand how much drinking just two or three before a game can affect their lives. The concentration of sugar in a sports drink is recommended to be 6-7% carbohydrate to allow maximum absorption and minimize spikes and crashes in blood sugar. Higher concentrations such as those in energy drinks will slow fluid absorption into the blood and energy system, increasing the possibility of dehydration. The drinks may cause seizures due to the crash following the energy high that occurs after drinking the energy drink. Seizures can be serious, causing permanent damage to the brain or even death, although it’s rare. Who would want some kid to have seizures because they thought energy drinks were good? I certainly don’t. Not all sports drinks are bad. In fact most aren’t when drank in moderate amounts. The problem is that most people think that if a little is good a lot will be great. But that’s not the case. People under 18 won’t realize what they are doing to their body when they drink more than one at a time, in fact most adults wouldn’t. That’s why it should be illegal for people under 18 to buy energy drinks. So Write or call your representative and speak your opinion. Tell him to vote to pass the law that will make it illegal for people under 18 to buy energy drinks. Save young people from the effects and possible death. You might not think your call will mater but you never know, your call might help him make the decision to vote for the law to pass.

Internal Development and Strategic Alliance

Internal Development and Strategic Alliance Should firms go it alone or pursue a strategic alliance? This essay will compare internal development (organic development) with strategic alliances and look at whether it is better for the organisation to go it alone or partner with other organisations.   Internal development is where strategies are developed by building up the organisation’s own resource base and competences, Johnson and Scholes, (1999). Strategic alliances are when two more parties form a collaborative agreement to exchange or combine resources to pursue a development strategy, but remain separate legal entities, Bennett (1996). Joint ventures, licensing, networks are examples of types of alliances. There are many benefits that can be achieved from going it alone that may not be available through an alliance.   First of all, when an organisation develops a highly technical product the organisation through the process of development, may begin to understand its organisation better, and thus learn ways of building up or acquiring competences.   This type of learning and development may not be as extensive if alliance partners are involved in the development process.    Similarly when an organisation enters new markets through direct investment (going it alone) it can gain advantages (e.g. local market knowledge, competences in selling to new markets) that it may not have gained through working through distribution alliance partners. By going it alone – the organisation receives the full benefits of undertaking a development venture – including all the profits, patents, technical know-how and resulting competitive advantages. With alliances, depending on the agreement, any success (profits, patents, know-how) has to be shared between partners.    By undertaking internal development the organisations can exercise greater co-ordination and control over the investment and the objectives of development. With an alliance (e.g. JV), however, organisations may lose that autonomy and find it harder to control the development because decisions have to be taken on a joint basis.   Many alliances have failed due to differing objectives or motives by alliance partners.   For example, one partner may go into an alliance for short term learning gain, whereas the other partner may see the alliance as more strategic, long term and replacing one area of its value chain, Wit and Meyer (1998). With internal dev elopment there can be a greater degree of control and co-ordination, and perhaps a greater chance of the development objectives being met, without disputes. Going it alone may be a preferential route for those firms who are particularly sensitive about exposing or giving away core competences or skills that provide the organisation with a competitive advantage in the market place.   If an organisation believes that the risks of exposure of its core competences are too great through an alliance, it is more likely to use internal development – because core competences can be internalised.   Going it alone may make sense to an organisation which is pursuing development which is characterised as â€Å"fit led innovation†.   When the organisation is able to use or realistically grow its resources and competences to meet the market opportunity.   However, if the level of innovation required is more â€Å"stretch led† the organisation may have to carefully consider whether it should pursue internal development or other methods of development in order to meet its market opportunity.   For some organisations going it alone may be the only option available to them – especially if they are working in a field which is breaking new ground or where there are no other suitable partners available, (Johnson and Scholes, 1999). Therefore going it alone can offer organisations many benefits over other methods of development. However, the method is often criticised for being a slower form of development (Johnson and Scholes, 1999), requiring a higher overall capital outlay (Wit and Meyer, 1998) and has the downside that the organisation bears the full costs and risks if the development (e.g. product development or market development) fails.   By going it alone an organisation can miss out on all the benefits available to them from alliances.   The benefits of alliances will now be discussed in relation to the Xerox-Fuji 50:50 joint venture alliance case study, (Hill, 2000). The alliance between Xerox and Fuji gave each company significant benefits over and above, them going it alone.   Firstly, both companies benefited from sharing the costs of their market and technology development.    Fuji and Xerox, were able to bring the â€Å"best of the best† from both companies.   They were able to pool their resources, competences, skills, technology know-how together to create a new, fresh entity, with defined objectives for both parties Wit and Meyer (1998).   Fuji, had the local knowledge of markets, distribution channels and Xerox, excellent skills and know-how in manufacturing and sales, thus the alliance enabled both companies to benefit from each other’s competences.   Through an alliance mutual l earning can take place which can complement each other’s companies strengths or weaknesses.   By going it alone you can limit yourself to the organisation’s own skills and competences and only what you can realistically develop internally. The Xerox and Fuji alliance meant that both organisations were able to limit their risks of development. Xerox was able to test the market for its products before committing itself to a new market (Hill, 2000).   It could remove its investment without too much difficulty.   If it had gone it alone, market entry may have been harder and more risky for Xerox.   Certainly alliances can be preferable if an organisation is undertaking a risky development – as failure can shared between partners. Alliances due to their nature, can also provide faster methods of development than which can be created through internal development. However, alliances have been criticised for: i) their high failure rates – 60% after 2 years fail, (Dawes, 1994) ii) Risk of exposing competences and technical know-how to partners iii) Disputes, relationship issues that result from working with other partners iv) Profits and advantages having to be shared between partners iv) the less autonomy and control available to partners compared with going it alone. In answer to the question should firms go it alone or pursue a strategic alliance – I   believe it really depends on the current situation of the organisation (internal and external).   There may be circumstances where an organisation would be better to go it alone – especially if the organisation was concerned about exposing its core competences, felt that its existing resources and competences would be sufficient to meet the market opportunity, and it needed high levels of control over its development decisions.   In other circumstances – the organisation may find it cost prohibitive to develop in-house, be experiencing strong competitive pressures and thus need to seek partners to support them on high research and development costs, or obtain specific skills, technical know-how to take advantage of a market opportunity.   As outlined above internal development (going it alone) and alliances have different advantages and disadvantages for different orga nisations.   Therefore the choice over which development method would need to be taken on a case by case basis. BIBLIOGRAPHY In the preparation of this assignment I have consulted the following research sources: Bennett, R. (1996) International Business: Pitman Publishing Oxford University: (1990) A Concise Directory of Business: Oxford University Press Hill, C. (2000) International Business: Competing in a Global Marketplace: McGraw Hill Needle, D. (1995) Business in Context, An introduction to Business and its environment, Second Edition: International Thompson Business Press Bleeke J. and Earnst D. (1992) Collaborating to Compete: Wiley and Sons Dussauge, P. Garrette B., (1999) Co-operative Strategy: Competing Successfully through Strategic Alliances: Wiley Lorange P. and Roos J., (1993) Strategic Alliances: Blackwell Lynch R. (1993) Business Alliance Guide: The Hidden Competitive Weapon: Wiley Sandaram and Black (1995) The International Business Environment: text and cases:  Prentice Hall Rugman and Hodgetts (1995) International Business: A Strategic Management Approach: McGrawhill Matsura, N. (1991) International Business, A New Era: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich (HBJ) Dawes, B. (1994) International Business: A European Perspective: Stanley Thorne Johnson and Scholes (1999), Exploring Corporate Strategy, Prentice Hall

Explaining The Primary Purpose Of Taxation Economics Essay

Explaining The Primary Purpose Of Taxation Economics Essay Tax is an enforced  fee  that is charged on individuals and organizations  by government  or its agency on a  product,  income, or  service. Despite many people complaining of making tax contributions to government, these contributions are very important for the economy of a country. This is because these financial contributions are used by government for the implementation of various socio-economic development projects such as the construction of roads and bridges, schools, health facilities and provision of social services like national security, provision of salaries for civil servants including the police, the army, judges, doctors, nurses and teachers. However, to clearly understand the rationale behind government charging of taxes terms such as taxation, equity in relation to taxation, direct and indirect tax and sources of income, need to be clearly understood. Taxation mainly refers to the  actual act in which government or its taxing authority (Such as Malawi Revenue Authority) actually  collects tax from individuals and organizations. In Malawi, taxation is guided by several principles that are mostly highlighted in the Taxation Act and Amendments. The taxation principles emphasize that taxes collected should be just-enough to generate revenue  required  for  provision  of essential  public services, and that taxes must be  spread  over as wide as possible  section  of the  population, or  sectors  of  economy. Furthermore, taxes are enforced in a manner that facilitates  voluntary compliance  from individuals and organizations to the maximum extent possible, but also taxes must equally burden all  individuals  or  entities  in similar economic circumstances. Adding to this, taxes do not favor any one  group  or sector over another. Equity in relation to taxation is another important element that needs to be clear understood as far as taxation is concerned. The word equity centers on the fairness and justness of collecting taxes by government. Equity in relation to taxation implies giving as much  advantage and  consideration to one  individual or organization  as it is given to another in similar economic conditions. This is a principle that taxes should be fair and should be based on different peoples ability to pay, and is usually related to their income. Practically, it is expected that an individual that earns more income has to pay more than an individual earning a comparable lower income. Taxes are divided into two main groups of Direct taxes and indirect taxes. On one hand, the direct taxes can be said to be those paid directly to the government by the individuals or organizations on whom it is being imposed. Examples of direct taxes charged by the Malawi Revenue Authority include income taxes, such Pay As You Earn (PAYE), and as the name implies, is a tax on Income. Income, according to MRA includes the total amount in cash or kind received by or accrued to a person from sources within Malawi, or deemed to be within Malawi. Another form of direct tax is tax based on wealth and this is based on the wealth of an individual at the date of death and is sometimes called Estate Duty. On the other hand, Indirect tax, also referred to as goods and services tax, is a tax collected by an intermediary, such as a retail store from a person who bears the ultimate economic burden of the tax (such as the customer). Indirect taxes are computed in the cost of goods or services an in dividual or organization purchases. In Malawi an example of indirect tax is sales tax, which is a duty paid based on the value of goods or services that have been purchased. Sales tax in Malawi is known as Value Added Tax (VAT). Customs duty is another form of indirect duties and is tax levied on the value of goods that have been imported into the country. Excise duty is also a form of indirect tax and these are imposed on selected locally manufactured goods to discourage the consumption of such goods. There are a various number of income sources that are taxable from income an individual or organization earns, which is generally net income from employment, business and rentals. There are many sources of income but the most common are salary and wages, which is the kind of income that the majority of people have to deal with when filing their taxes and is what individuals earn from a job. Another source is self-employment income, which is any money that an individual makes outside a regular job from services rendered. For example, if an individual operates a home-based business, money from this endeavor would be counted as self-employment income. Another type of income that one may receive is interest income, and is the income one receives from putting money into a savings account. QUESTION TWO Explaining the Primary Purpose of Taxation Taxation is a means by which governments finance their expenditure by imposing charges on citizens and corporate entities. The main purpose of taxation is to accumulate funds for the functioning of the government machineries. All governments in the world cannot run its administrative office without funds and it has no such system incorporated in itself to generate profit from its functioning.  In other words, a government can run its administrative set up only through public funding which is collected in the form of tax. Therefore, it can be well understood that the purpose of taxation is very simple and obvious for proper functioning of a state. Taxes are charges levied against a citizens personal income or on property or for some specified activity. As such, one purpose of taxation is to increase in effectiveness and productivity of the nation as government is able to implement various socio-economic development projects such as the construction of roads and bridges, schools, hea lth facilities and provision of social services. Another reason is that taxation assists in reducing consumption of unwanted goods. Taxes as such can be used as an effective tool to reduce the consumption of unwanted goods like alcohol. Higher taxes on such goods reduce the consumption as the price of the product will be very high for the consumers. Government also uses taxes as a way to protect local industries and as such make them more profitable. Increasing tariffs on imports and charging lower taxes to local products may boost the demand for goods and services produced by domestic industry. Taxes on imports, which are called tariffs, can be used by government to correct an unfavorable balance of payment situation by increasing the tariffs. This will result in imports becoming expensive and will cause a fall in demand for the imported goods. Explaining Five Reasons that Contribute to Non Compliance with Tax Laws Non compliance of tax laws  can be said to be a failure, intentional or unintentional, of taxpayers to meet their tax obligations. This lack of compliance can be as a result of different factors as indicated below: A Rising or High Tax Burden: Individuals and organizations will tend to be non compliant to tax laws when the taxes are deemed to be high as compared with the cost of living. In such a case taxpayers will tend to avoid payment of taxes so as to have a sizeable amount of money to be used in the purchase of different commodities. Lack of Knowledge on Tax Laws: This point focuses on the unintentional failure of a taxpayer to comply to tax laws. An example would be a small or medium enterprise that does not know that it is required by law for their businesses to be registered and as such pay taxes. Further, taxpayers would like the actual location or requirements needed for them to comply. Complexity of Tax Laws: Unintentional non-compliance may also be caused by the complexity of tax laws, that is by the difficulty of keeping accurate records and the inability to obtain the information needed to comply. For example, low-income taxpayers who cannot afford to employ tax agents could face problems understanding basic laws and even routine mathematical operations and interpreting the tax tables may present problems. Tax Evasion: Tax evasion is the failure to declare taxable activity or income and this is a practice in the employment of the services such as consultancies, builders, plumbers and decorators. This intentional non-compliance requires the taxpayer to have some measure of understanding of the tax system. Weak Tax System: This can also lead to intentional non compliance of tax laws as taxpayers are able to utilize loopholes in the tax system. As such, this encourages taxpayers to be non compliant as they are assured of not facing prosecution.

Eulogy for Grandmother :: Eulogies Eulogy

Eulogy for Grandmother Theresa Smith was born on December 3, 1925 in Materson, NJ. She died in Williamsville on March 2, 2005, at age 80. Theresa Smith was great grandmother of one, grandmother of five of us, mother of three, sibling of three sisters and two brothers, and wife to one great man, my grandfather, Ron Smith. It's hard for me to reflect upon my grandmother's life because I was part of it for a little less than half its span. A lot of ideas went through my head at a million miles an hour, few of them stuck with me. One thought I had after my uncle asked me to consider saying a few words was that it was hard to understand my grandmother without also knowing my grandfather. My grandmother and grandfather got married in 1938. They spent a lot of their early married life in the Morristown, NJ area where my grandfather was a schoolteacher and later a principal. He earned his doctorate in education during that time, which ultimately allowed him to become a professor at Glassboro State College in Southern New Jersey. They moved to Glassboro in the late 1950s with their children, Sharon and Dennis. This was my grandparent's home until around the time my grandfather died in 1982. During this period, my grandmother managed to have a 20-year career as an elementary school teacher and a remedial reading teacher at the elementary and middle school levels. I think the reason that she taught at that time was because she was committed to helping the community, and we would continue to see this trait in her when she volunteered at hospitals in North Jersey and in this area, later in life. My grandfather was the kind of man who loved my grandmother and supported her in every way, including her career. He was well known in New Jersey and probably throughout the country as a leader of the New Jersey Education Association and the New Jersey Retired Educators' Association. He wrote several books on educational practice and educational law in the State of New Jersey. My grandparents had a great life together. They traveled extensively, particularly after they retired. They visited their children and grandchildren often, and were very involved in our lives and what mattered to us. It was a tremendous shock to all of us when my grandfather passed away in 1982. Eulogy for Grandmother :: Eulogies Eulogy Eulogy for Grandmother Theresa Smith was born on December 3, 1925 in Materson, NJ. She died in Williamsville on March 2, 2005, at age 80. Theresa Smith was great grandmother of one, grandmother of five of us, mother of three, sibling of three sisters and two brothers, and wife to one great man, my grandfather, Ron Smith. It's hard for me to reflect upon my grandmother's life because I was part of it for a little less than half its span. A lot of ideas went through my head at a million miles an hour, few of them stuck with me. One thought I had after my uncle asked me to consider saying a few words was that it was hard to understand my grandmother without also knowing my grandfather. My grandmother and grandfather got married in 1938. They spent a lot of their early married life in the Morristown, NJ area where my grandfather was a schoolteacher and later a principal. He earned his doctorate in education during that time, which ultimately allowed him to become a professor at Glassboro State College in Southern New Jersey. They moved to Glassboro in the late 1950s with their children, Sharon and Dennis. This was my grandparent's home until around the time my grandfather died in 1982. During this period, my grandmother managed to have a 20-year career as an elementary school teacher and a remedial reading teacher at the elementary and middle school levels. I think the reason that she taught at that time was because she was committed to helping the community, and we would continue to see this trait in her when she volunteered at hospitals in North Jersey and in this area, later in life. My grandfather was the kind of man who loved my grandmother and supported her in every way, including her career. He was well known in New Jersey and probably throughout the country as a leader of the New Jersey Education Association and the New Jersey Retired Educators' Association. He wrote several books on educational practice and educational law in the State of New Jersey. My grandparents had a great life together. They traveled extensively, particularly after they retired. They visited their children and grandchildren often, and were very involved in our lives and what mattered to us. It was a tremendous shock to all of us when my grandfather passed away in 1982.

Computers and Girlfriends :: Essays Papers

Computers and Girlfriends What is it about leading your troops to a bone crushing victory in Blizzard's latest real time strategy computer game, Starcraft, that gives you such a sense of accomplishment? How does playing a video game cause you to let the phone ring and be late for dinner with your significant other... How many fights have ensued when you claimed you were tired and are found lying, playing Starcraft into the wee hours of the night and not waking up till 4pm in the afternoon. Computers and games like Starcraft have taken the place of desperate ho's as the homewreakers of our time. In the past few years, the undeniable bond between males and their non-breathing companions, personal computers has strengthened 10 fold. With the booming popularity of the internet and increasing quality of games and entertainment offerings. Many guys are spending much more time on their computers... time that used to be quality time for the girlfriend. In fact, I bet if computers had nice bodies and breasts, we would n't even bother with girlfriends. The computer is the perfect companion... the computer is never mad at you, it always says what it means and it doesn't matter if they are in the mood or not... porn is available at the click of a mouse. What computers don't provide us with, is the ability to carry offspring, maybe somewhere down the line this will happen... but till then, I guess guys are stuck. :) So, how do we balance between girls and computers? How do we avoid getting in *censored* for getting that one last game of Starcraft in? Teach her how to play! Once she sees how fun it is, she'll be the one calling you on to battle.net for a quick 2v2 hunters game! Give her the inside scoop on how to play (except for your deepest secret strategies, or she might end up beating you one day and she'll dump you to find a better boyfriend that is better at Starcraft) and she'll be kicking newbie ass in no time. Another word of advice, is never let your girlfriend win. Or at least in an obvious manner, they hate this more than anything. Make it close. If you end up trying and getting massacred, simply play it off like you let them win. They will be pissed but it will save you some face and give you some time to improve your skillz.