XN000022-1973-05-17 — Page 6

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Thursday, May 17, 1973

REVENUE INSPECTORS NOT EXTRACTING INFORMATION FROM STOCKBROKERS

The Commissioner of Inland Revenue, Mr. F.E. Rainbow, today denied

a newspaper report, attributed to his department, alleging that drastic

action would be taken to tax the profits of habitual traders on Hong Kong's four stock exchanges.

Commenting on the report, he recalled that the Financial Secretary,

Mr. C.P. Haddon-Cave, had referred in his budget speech to the appointment

of Inland Revenue staff to "make inquiries into the activities of habitual

dealers with a view to establishing that they are carrying on businesses or 'adventures in the nature of trade', thereby bringing their rewards into

charge for profits tax".

"We have already taken steps to establish a section to deal with

such cases," Mr. Rainbow said. "But naturally we cannot disclose our sources

of information.

"Certainly we have no team of inspectors extracting information

from stockbrokers, as alleged.

"The team of inspectors assigned to stockbrokers' offices are there

solely to check on stamp duty.

"We have taken steps, yes, but to suggest that these are drastic

may create unnecessary misgiving that we are resorting to extreme and unprecedented

measures.

"The steps we are taking are the normal ones we would take to identify

and assess any person carrying on any kind of trade or business," Mr. Rainbow

stressed.

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