HIGHER TAXATION

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 5, 6 July 1939, Page 12

HIGHER TAXATION

AUSTRALIAN FORECAST rf,£i>2 r tS"/6^ 1"31 taxatio" increases during the fiscal year., which closed last Friday, amounted to £3,210 000 Treasury officials are now examining details .of taxation increases, which Wlll ,b, e designed to bring in at least an additional £5,000,000, of which between. £2,500,000 and £3,000 000 will be from direct taxation. Income-tax rates will be increased to yield, about £14.000,000, compared with the £12.000,000 from that source during . 1938-39. The rates were increased 15 per cent, in the last Budget and probably another similar rise will be made in the forthcoming Budget. • • • Company tax now stands at Is in the £, having been reduced by 4d in the early days Of the Lyons: Administration. A section of Cabinet is strongly of the belief that the rate should be increased again, with, if possible, some provision for a heavier impost on companies returning huge profits, rather than on small concerns. Apart' from direct taxation, an increase of, 1 per cent, in the sales-tax rate is considered likely. This would bring the'rate up to 6 per cent., the previous maximum, which was successively reduced by the Lyons Government to .4 per cent. An increase of 1. per cent, in sales tax would yield about £1,500,000 more than the £9,000,000 received this year. Certain Customs and excise duties, covering mainly what are termed "luxury" items, will also be increased, but the yield from this source is not expected-to exceed about £500,000. With the additional taxation in force, the Federal Budget for the coming year will set a new record of nearly £100,000,000 for revenue and expenditure. A small surplus will be forecast. This will be the second Budget since 1932 to show increased taxation, and the second in succession. From 1933 to 1937 there were continual tax reductions and other concessions, the aggregate annual value of w.hich was estimated at £15,605,000. For one year following there was no change. ■ v

SHARES IN SYDNEY MARKET FAIRLY STEADY (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copy right.) SYDNEY, July 5. Prices on the Sydney Stock Exchange today were fairly steady at around the recently-reduced levels, with some evidence of drift in the case of irMustrials not classed as front rank. Sales included:— £ s. d.. Bank of N.S.W.' 28 0 0 Com. Banking Co. of Sydney 19 0 0 Commercial Bank of Aust. ' (New Zealand delivery) 014 11 Nat. Bank of Aust. (£lO paid) ■ 12, 0 Bank of Adelaide ........ 514 6 Colonial Sugar 44 17 6 Burns, Philp 2 12 0 Associated Newspapers ... 018 3 Associated Newspapers (pref.) 1 0 1 Aust. Consol. Industries .. 113 10£ British Tobacco. (New Zealand delivery) 2 6 9 Dunlop-Perdriau 0 18 11 Woolworths Ltd '. 1 1 9 Anthony Hordern 0 14 0 Morts Dock (New Zealand delivery) 0 14 11 General Industries 0 18 9 Mercantile Mutual Ins 1 9 0 Gibson Howes .. < 110 0 Hume Pipe 0 19 3 W. Atkins ...: .12 6 Mauri Bros. 3 13 0 Mark Foy 0 16 «> 3 Goldsbrough Mort 1 4 9 Henry Jones Co-op. 2 9 6 Gordon and Gotch ..., 2 12 4 United Provisions 0 7 10 Broken Hill Pty 3 0 9 j Broken Hill Pty. (cont.) 215 6 North Broken Hill ...... 2 3 6 Broken Hill South 1 6 0 Zinc Corporation 4 2 0 Mount Morgan 0 9 8 Loloma • ■ 1. l 4 1 MELBOURNE, July 5. Sales on the Melbourne Stock Exchange today included:— £ s. d. Comm. Bank of Aust. ... 015 0 Nat. Bank of Aust. (£lO paid) 12 3 0 Herald and Weekly Times . 3 0 6 Dunlop-Perdriau 0 19 0 Aust. Paper Manufacturers (pref.) ....... .. 12 4 Aust. Consol. Industries 113 9 Broken Hill Pty. -.. 3 0 6 North Broken Hill ...... 2 36 Mount Lyell 1 14 6 Placer Development .... 3 7 6 Emperor Mine ........... 0 9 0