Posted on 04/09/2014 9:39:24 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Probably resulted in more tourism for Hawaii. Japanese love to come to Hawaii to shop.
The only way to increase sales taxes without this happening would be to accompany the increase with a simultaneous income tax decrease.
One of the most admirable traits of the Japanese is a absolute detestation of income tax and an ongoing effort to avoid paying it by any means they can manage.
> Japan raised its sales tax from 5% to 8%.
Wow, I wish I only had to pay 8% sales tax. I live in the Totalitarian Dystopia of New York. My sales tax is 8.875% and it’s a killer.
Sorry, but I’m not buying this (too high a tax on credulity). Canada had a national consumption tax at 8%, without the drop in sales this article claims resulted in Japan. When it was lowered by a couple points, we also didn’t see a big jump in consumption. Same goes for Europe, and many other countries with consumption taxes.
High aggregate taxes are a concern — but, consumption taxes actually disrupt the economy less than income taxes.
Hawaii is the only state where the alternative language signs are in Japanese rather than Spanish. Hawaii sales tax is 4% - 4.5%
If you go to the Ala Moana mall in Honolulu you’d think you were in downtown Tokyo.
The point is, you’re supposed to REPLACE the income tax with the consumption tax, not add it to the burden!
The facts, as you state them (and I think you’re probably right) belie the alarmist, misleading headline (what “disaster”?). Also, the article uses sales figures for a single department store, and attempts to extrapolate from there to the whole economy. Clearly, the author had a point to make, and pummeled the “facts” into submission, until they “supported” his point. This is the sort of propaganda-posing-as-reporting that we’ve come to expect from the leftist media. There’s no excuse for it.
Been there (the mall not Tokyo) I know what you mean.
I agree. I suspect the result was a good year, followed by the current bad year, followed by average years there out.
Headlines are used to sell ads, not provide news.
Tell me are there ANY free market political parties in Japan? When even the “right wing” does this a nation is trouble.
And yet New Hampshire has a Democrat governor (after the failure that was the last one), and though the Repubs dominate the House (I don’t know about the state Senate or Executive whatever it’s called-basically they’re over the bureaucracy), they also have a Demo and a RINO US Senator and 2 Demos on the US House.
Good gosh, I have campaigned up there, and nice people, but that state has turned insane since at least 2006.
You can’t repeal the Law of Demand...as prices increase the market will demand less. Happens in the US too. Minnesota raised cigarette taxes so that cigarettes cost 40-50% more than in surrounding states and Minnesotans within an hours drive of the state borders are buying their cigarettes in neighboring states. Not only are cigarette tax revenues less than predicted, Minnesota merchants in communities near the borders are see their business significantly decline as shoppers are not only buying their cigarettes in surrounding states but doing other shopping as well.
A sales tax is vulnerable to consumer psychology. Government revenues drop off during the very periods where you need government to intervene.
If Japan had seen a 3% hike in prices due to inflation, they would see some drop. But this level of dorp probably started as a consumer protest. They quit buying. But as soon as they do, everyone has to quit buying, because you didn’t make any sales last month. And now Japan has a full scale recession on their hands.
I think raising import tariffs and lowering individual and corporate income taxes are the way to go for America. It would restore American industry. Putting people back to work.
A sales tax is vulnerable to consumer psychology. Government revenues drop off during the very periods where you need government to intervene.
If Japan had seen a 3% hike in prices due to inflation, they would see some drop. But this level of dorp probably started as a consumer protest. They quit buying. But as soon as they do, everyone has to quit buying, because you didn’t make any sales last month. And now Japan has a full scale recession on their hands.
I think raising import tariffs and lowering individual and corporate income taxes are the way to go for America. It would restore American industry. Putting people back to work.
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