Atlantica Monitor

KPMG's Index of Business Costs and Total Tax Burden -- "Competitive Alternatives"

Global consultancy KPMG recently issued "Competitive Alternatives," its periodic report on the total tax burden imposed upon corporations operating in major global business centers in ten countries, and the results may strike some as surprising. Among the more salient findings:

Canada placed third overall in lowest total tax burden, the United States fifth overall, and France tenth overall.

We say the results may be a bit surprising since Canada is considered by many observers to be a high tax environment. KPMG found otherwise.

Montreal and Toronto, in fact, were the sixth and seventh least expensive of the 102 major metropolitan areas surveyed.

Baltimore and Atlanta were the least expensive centers in the continental USA.

For the full report, click here.

"Enabling Trade" -- World Economic Forum's Global Rankings

What constitutes an environment favorable for international trade? The World Economic Forum recently issued the Global Enabling Trade Report, identifying ten factors (i.e., regulatory environment, telecommunications infrastructure, etc.) that influence the trade and investment  environments in more than one hundred nations.

The three countries/jurisdictions with the environments most favorable to trade and investment?

• Hong Kong
• Singapore
• Sweden

Other countries and rankings of note:

5th -- Canada
14th -- United States
19th -- France
28th -- Israel

For the full rankings, click here.

Welcome to Atlantica Monitor

Welcome to Atlantica Monitor, the international business and global affairs blog of Atlantica Group.

The intersection of business -- which is firmly rooted in practical, "here and now" considerations -- and global affairs -- which are inextricably tied to political and social conditions -- represents continuing challenge and opportunity.

In this blog we'll post commentary and observations from ourselves and from others holding various opinions and perspectives. A principal objective will be to highlight the extent to which policy and culture affect business, and, of course, the extent to which business impacts policy.

We invite your participation, and ask you to join the discussion. Feel free to contact me, Perry Newman, directly, at pbn@atlanticagroup.com, or by posting a comment below. Thank you for checking the Atlantica Monitor.