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Trade barriers


Trade barriers are government-induced restrictions on international trade. The barriers can take many forms, including the following:

  • Tariffs

  • Non-tariff barriers to trade

    • Import licenses

    • Export licenses

    • Import quotas

    • Subsidies

    • Voluntary Export Restraints

    • Local content requirements

    • Embargo

    • Currency devaluation

    • Trade restriction

Most trade barriers work on the same principle: the imposition of some sort of cost on trade that raises the price of the traded products. If two or more nations repeatedly use trade barriers against each other, then a trade war results.

Economists generally agree that trade barriers are detrimental and decrease overall economic efficiency, this can be explained by the theory of comparative advantage. In theory, free trade involves the removal of all such barriers, except perhaps those considered necessary for health or national security. In practice, however, even those countries promoting free trade heavily subsidize certain industries, such as agriculture and steel.

Trade barriers are often criticized for the effect they have on the developing world. Because rich-country players call most of the shots and set trade policies, goods such as crops that developing countries are best at producing still face high barriers. Trade barriers such as taxes on food imports or subsidies for farmers in developed economies lead to overproduction and dumping on world markets, thus lowering prices and hurting poor-country farmers. Tariffs also tend to be anti-poor, with low rates for raw commodities and high rates for labour-intensive processed goods. The Commitment to Development Index measures the effect that rich country trade policies actually have on the developing world.

Another negative aspect of trade barriers is that it would cause a limited choice of products and would therefore force customers to pay higher prices and accept inferior quality


Examples of free trade areas


  • North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

  • South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA)

  • European Free Trade Association

  • European Union (EU)

  • Union of South American Nations

  • New West Partnership (An internal free-trade zone in Canada between Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan)

  • Gulf Cooperation Council common market

Other trade barriers include differences in culture, customs, traditions, laws, language and currency.

Trading barriers include farming produce industry.


Public limited company


public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a kind of public company (publicly held company) in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, and other Commonwealth jurisdictions. It is a limited (liability) company whose shares are freely sold and traded to the public, with a minimum share capital of £50,000 and the letters PLC after its name. Similar companies in the United States are called publicly traded companies.

A PLC can be either an unlisted or listed company on the stock exchanges. In the United Kingdom, a public limited company usually must include the words "public limited company" or the abbreviation "PLC" or "plc" at the end and as part of the legal company name. Welsh companies may instead choose to end their names with c.c.c. However, some public limited companies (mostly nationalised concerns) incorporated under special legislation are exempted from bearing any of the identifying suffixes.


Private company limited by shares


private company limited by shares, usually called a private limited company (Ltd.) (though this can theoretically also refer to a private company limited by guarantee), is a type of company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales, Scotland, that of certain Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland. It has shareholders with limited liability and its shares may not be offered to the general public, unlike those of a public limited company (plc).

"Limited by shares" means that the company has shareholders, and that the liability of the shareholders to creditors of the company is limited to the capital originally invested, i.e. the nominal value of the shares and any premium paid in return for the issue of the shares by the company. A shareholder's personal assets are thereby protected in the event of the company's insolvency, but money invested in the company will be lost.

A limited company may be "private" or "public". A private limited company's disclosure requirements are lighter, but for this reason its shares may not be offered to the general public (and therefore cannot be traded on a public stock exchange). This is the major distinguishing feature between a private limited company and a public limited company. Most companies, particularly small companies, are private.

Private companies limited by shares are usually required to have the suffix "Limited" (often written "Ltd" or "Ltd.") or "Incorporated" ("Inc.") as part of their name, though the latter cannot be used in the UK or the Republic of Ireland; companies set up by Act of Parliament may not have Limited in their name. In the Republic of Ireland "Teoranta" ("Teo.") may be used instead, largely by Gaeltacht companies. "Cyfyngedig" ("Cyf.") may be used by Welsh companies in a similar fashion.


Requirements

Share capital


When a Limited Company is formed it must issue one or more subscriber shares to its initial members. It may increase capitalisation by issue of further shares. The issued share capital of the company is the total number of shares existing in the company multiplied by the nominal value of each share.

A company incorporated in England and Wales can be created with any number of shares of any value, in any currency. For example, there may be 10,000 shares with a nominal value of 1p, or 100 shares each of £1. In each case the share capital would be £100.

Unissued shares can be issued at any time by the directors using a Form SH01 - Return of Allotment of Shares (Pursuant to Companies Act, 2006) subject to prior authorization by the shareholders.

Shares in a private company are usually transferred by private agreement between the seller and the buyer, as shares in a private company may not by law be offered to the general public. A stock transfer form is required to register the transfer with the company. The articles of association of private companies often place restrictions on the transfer of shares.


Company accounts


A company's first accounts must start on the day of incorporation. The first financial year must end on the accounting reference date, or a date up to seven days either side of this date. Subsequent accounts start on the day following the year-end date of the previous accounts. They end on the next accounting reference date or a date up to seven days either side.

To help companies meet this filing requirement, Companies House send a pre-printed "shuttle" form to its registered office several weeks before the anniversary of incorporation. This will show the information that has already given to Companies House. If a company's accounts are delivered late there is an automatic penalty. This is between £100 and £1,000 for a private company.

The first accounts of a private company must be delivered:


  • within 10 months of the end of the accounting reference period until April 2008, when it was reduced to 9 months; or

  • if the accounting reference period is more than 12 months, within 22 months of the date of incorporation, or three months from the end of the accounting reference period, whichever is longer.

A company may change its accounting reference date by sending Form 225 to the Registrar.

Registered office


Every company must have a registered office, which does not need to be its usual business address. It is sometimes the company's lawyers or accountants, for example. All official letters and documentation from the government departments (including Inland Revenue and Companies House) will be sent to this address, and it must be shown on all official company documentation. The registered office can be anywhere in England and Wales (or Scotland if the company is registered there). If a company changes its registered office address after incorporation, the new address must be notified to Companies House on Form AD01.



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