Virtual Water

Virtual Water Trade – Embedded/Embodied Water 

Virtual water is defined as the total volume water which is needed in order to produce and process. Virtual water trade also known as trade in embodied or embedded water is related to hidden flow of water in case other commodities or food tend to get traded in different places.

On an average it takes around1,600 cubic meters of water to produce ` metric tonne of wheat and the accurate volume could depend on more or less on the climate as well as agricultural conditions. According to Hoekstra and Chapagain they have defined virtual content of product – a commodity, service or good, as `volume of freshwater which is utilised to create a product, measured at the place it was actually produced’ and relates to the sum on the utilisation of the water in the various stages of the production chain.

According to John Anthony Allan, Professor from King’s College London and the School of Oriental and African Studies had introduced the concept of virtual water in order to support his views that countries in the Middle East could save their scarce supply of water by relying on import of food.

He received an award of the 2008 Stockholm Water Prize, for his contribution. He states that `the water is considered to be virtual due to the fact that once the wheat is grown, the real water used to grow it is no longer actually contained in the wheat and the concept of virtual water helps in realizing how much water could be needed to produce different goods and services’.

Some Deficiencies in Concept of Virtual Water

He further states that in `arid and semi-arid locations, the value of the virtual water of good or service could be useful in determining the best use of the available scarce water.’ However there are some deficiencies in the concept of virtual water which means that there is a significant danger on depending on these measures in order to guide policy conclusions.

As per Australia’s National Water Commission it is considered that the measurement of virtual water has less practical value in the making of decision with regards to the best allocation of scarce water resources.

Recently the concept of virtual water trade has been gaining weightage in the scientific and the political arguments with the notion of its concept being ambiguous and changes have been moving between a descriptive, analytical concept and a political induced strategy.

From the point of view of an analytical concept, virtual water trade relates to an instrument which enables the identification as well as the assessment of policy choice not only in the scientific but also in the political discourse.

Concept Analytically helps Global/Local/Regional Level

From the point of politically induced strategy, the query is whether virtual water trade could be used in a sustainable way, or whether implementation could be managed in an economic, social or in an ecological manner and which countries would have a meaningful option of the concept offered.

In the framework of latest developments from supply oriented to demand oriented management of water resources, new field of governance has opened up which facilitates a differentiation as well as balancing of different perspective, interest and basic condition.

The concept analytically helps in distinguishing between global, local and regional level, together with their linkages. Which means that water resource problem needs to be solved.

Negative Inflation

Image credit: Sofia news agency

Inflation – Deflation 

Inflation is a term which tends to reduce the real value of money over time and deflation increases the real value of money, the currency of a regional or national economy, enabling an individual to purchase more products with the same amount of money overtime. In other words deflation is a situation when the price level decreases and the inflation rate tends to get negative.

Economist are of the opinion that deflation could be a problem in a modern economy since it increases the real value of debt and affects recessions, leading to a deflationary spiral. All episodes of deflations do not correspond with phases of poor economic growth. During the 19th century, deflation took place periodically in the U.S. and this deflation was the result of technological progress creating significant economic growth while at other times was due to financial crises particularly the Panic of 1837 that caused deflation during1844 as well as the Panic of 1873 triggering the Long Depression which lasted till 1879.

These periods of deflation were prior to the establishment of the U.S. Federal Reserve System and the active management of monetary issues. Deflation episodes were rare and brief with the development of Federal Reserve while American economic progress has been unprecedented

Negative Inflation 

Negative inflation is said to be an economic phenomenon wherein the economy tends to move out of an inflationary phase and enters into a phase where there is less money in circulation. Negative inflation tends to occur when the prices fall due to the supply of goods which is higher than the demand for those products.

It is often due to reduction in money, consumer or credit spending and could be the result of a combination of various factors which may include, having excess money in circulation that may decrease the value of money which in turn would reduce prices, with more products manufactured than the demand for the same.

 This could lead to businesses decreasing their prices in order to urge consumers to purchase those products and not having sufficient money in circulation causes those with money to hold on to it instead of spending it and decreased demand for goods decreases spending.

Though it would seem that lower prices are good, deflation could ripple through the economy for instance when it creates high level of unemployment, turning into a bad situation and this type of a recession could turn into a worse situation like a depression.

Leads to Unemployment => Decrease in Spending => Less Demand

Deflation could lead to unemployment since the companies tend to make less money and react on cutting costs to survive which may include in closing of the stores, plants and warehouses and laying-off their workers.

This results in the worker having to decrease on their spending leading to less demand with more deflation causing a deflation spiral which may be difficult to break. Deflation tends to work without affecting the rest of the economy when businesses are capable of cutting the costs of production for the purpose of lowering prices like in the case of technology, since the cost of technology products has reduced over the years though it was due to the cost of producing technology that had decreased and not due to decreased demand.

How to Save Hundreds of Dollars with Tax Credits

Awareness of Tax Credit

Being unaware of tax credit is like losing on a pay check and sad to say, several individuals are not aware of it. Each dollar of credit is equal to a dollar in tax savings, for instance in a federal income tax bracket of 28% and getting a buck’s worth of additional write-off could save one with 28 cents. Individuals tend to miss out on tax credits mainly due to the fact that they seem to be in a hurry when the dreaded tax filing deadline is near. Credits tend to fall through these cracks since they panic resulting in making complicated calculation or filling out additional forms. Setting aside more time on your return could help you to net several hundred dollars or could be more. For example –

Foreign Tax Credit - If a person has worked in a foreign country or would be having substantial income outside U.S, they must be well aware about the foreign tax credit which is intended to save you from being taxed by the two different countries on the same income. If the person tends to invest in some international mutual funds they could collect credit due to the fact that it is likely you paid foreign taxes the previous year – knowingly or not. A closer look at the statement on the fund summary of the previous year will provide you with some calculations in order to know the exact amount of foreign taxes which should show up on Forms 1099-DIV and 1099-INT. Presuming that the foreign taxes are from these sources totalling to or less than $300, one can claim the credit on Form 1040, Line 48 and have around $600 of foreign taxes and continue to follow the easy procedure if filed jointly. In other cases, one could file Form 1116 to claim your credit, though it could be a bit nasty.

Dependent Care Credit - When a person is paid to take care of an under-age child of 13 while the parents are out at work, one could be eligible for the dependent care credit where the credit percentage could range from 20% to 35% based on qualifying expenses and depending on adjusted gross income – AGI. Maximum credit possible for a child could range from $600 to $1,050 and for two or more the range would be $1,200 to $2,100. One should also be eligible if expenses were incurred in taking care of any other dependent that could be physically or mentally incapable of taking care of themselves, a disabled person. For high income taxpayers, the credits have not been phased out though lower dollar limits mentioned could be applicable. Form 2441 – Child and Dependent Care Expenses could be filled and credits claimed on Form 1040, Line 49 on furnishing the name as well as the Social Security number of the care provider failing which the IRS would disallow the credit with recomputed tax and would either reduce the claimed refund or sent a bill for the difference.

Moreover the Form 2441 also informs the IRS if one owes the Nanny Tax if they have an in-home care provider. One needs to be careful in taking credit if they have also contributed to a pre-tax dependent care flexible spending account – FSA the previous year through their employer. The pre-tax FSA is usually a process since it could reduce the taxable salary cutting federal as well as state income taxes together with Social Security and Medicare taxes as well. The tax saving rate could exceed the 20% effective tax savings rate which could apply to several people claiming the dependent care credit.

Elderly/disabled Credit – is applicable to individuals who have reached the age of 65 at the end of a particular year or one who has retired on permanent and total disability. Strict income limits are applicable and the credit is not available to most of them. Credits could be claimed on Form 1040, Line 54.

Adoption Credit - is when an underage of 18 years in adopted, you could qualify for a 2014 tax credit up to $13,190 for the adoption expenses and if married, a joint return to qualify could be filed. Phase-out rule, for 2014 could cause the credit to vaporize between AGI of $197,880 and $237,880. On qualifying for the same, credit could be claimed by furnishing details on Form 8839 – Qualified Adoption Expenses, with one’s 1040 with the credit amount on Line 54.

Credit for Overpaid Social Security Taxes – is where there has been more than one employer in 2014 and the earnings have crossed over $117,000 with combined salary, one has withheld too much Social Security tax. Recovery of the excess can be done by reporting the overpaid amount on Form 1040 Line 72 which is treated as a tax repayment and the effect on the tax bill is that of a credit.

Best Online Company Formation Agent

An online company formation agent by the name of Wisteria Formations in UK is an authorised Companies House presenter for Company registrations. Their online company formation application enables a UK limited company with simple and efficient procedure. The provider offers basic services to incorporate a company instantly at a reasonable cost of £24.99 and can provide support to the business with several optional professional services such as business plan, tax advice, company secretary, accountancy and business advice, registered office and mail forwarding and VAT registration/PAYE registration.

With a dedicated support team on board they have the capabilities of reaching out to their customers with regards to completion of company incorporation, which is equipped by Wisteria Chartered Accountants who beside the completion of company formation also provide services which may be needed thereafter like accountancy or tax issues. The company does not offer a package service and should the customer need extra products or services, all they need to do is to opt for the extra products and services that are required on top of the basic company formation service.

Provision of Video Guidance 

Range of some of the extra products and services for the online application procedure comprises of official copies of the incorporation certificate, memorandum and articles of association, company register and share certificates, Company secretarial service, registered office service, VAT registration, tailor-made business plan, registration as an employer, free business planning meeting with Wisteria Chartered Accountants and assistance in opening a business bank account.

 The company is well aware that all company formation agents should adhere with the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 and hence strive to complete anti-money laundering checks prior to sending any application to the Companies House. Forming a limited company with the services of Wisteria Formation is easy and reliable wherein one needs to follow the ten step company formation process which eliminates the red tape from the process of incorporating a company.

 Besides this, the company formation service also enables the customer to check if the name is available with the Companies House. The provider has also made provision with a video guided process explaining each step of their ten step methods, in details for a quick and easy process in Company Formation.

NIIT Tech Nets Dip By 9.2% in Third Quarter

NIIT Technologies is one of the mid-tier IT services firm which had recently reported 9.2% decline in its net profit which now stands at Rs. 48.2 crores at the completion its third quarter. Comparing it with the third quarter of the last year, its revenue shows a minimal increase of just 1.4% with at Rs. 595.3 crore while it posted net profit of 53.1 crore last year for same quarter. The third quarter of each year is seen as a least productive and rather weak quarter by financial analysts.

Company Grows By Just 1% on Sequential Basis

On the sequential basis NIIT net profits had registered a growth by 20.02% which a result of improvement in the operating margins, higher incomes and lower depreciation rates during the months of July-September 2014. NIIT Technologies CEO and Joint MD, Arvind Thakur, had stated that NIIT had seen its operating margins improve by 15 basis points sequentially to 14.5% as a result of productivity initiatives in the third quarter. In the constant currency NIIT grew by one percent sequentially during the last quarter.

The company’s had even seen a dent in its operating margins because of the specific engagement in the beginning of the year which even explains the decline in net profit at the year-end. Regarding the overall demand of the NIIT IT services, Thakur had opined that the company had seen a robust growth in the United States but it weakness factor continues in the Euro Zone while excitement factor remains high in India.

NIIT Expand Its Revenue Generation

NIIT has seen healthy growth and expansion of revenues in Asia Pacific (APAC) and India. Most the revenue being generated this quarter is being pointed towards the execution of large orders which were secured by the company earlier this year. Now company’s revenue share had increased to 21 percent in this particular region. Whereas the Americans had contributed by 44% to the revenue while the Europe, Middle East and Africa counted for the 35 of the company’s revenue.

During this quarter NIIT had secured $109 million worth of new orders. Around 55% of new business was secured in the US. NIIT Technologies had even added five new customers during the third quarter out of which two are in US and one each coming from India, APAC and EMEA.

NIIT Supposed To Have Strong and Stable Last Quarter

The decline in the oil prices globally is helping to the cause of the NIIT as travel constitutes the largest chunk of the company’s revenue. The higher other income is accounted by the revaluation of assets and liabilities. NIIT is holding up strong regardless of the current volatility in the currency as due to gains from the dollars but incurring losses from the Euro and GBP.

However NIIT had frozen its hiring procedures and suffered a decline of 229 people in the workforce which is being attributed to the natural attrition rate of 15%. NIIT would begin hiring again from the current quarter in order to boost its workforce.