Taxes Are Going Up… Here’s Three Ways to Play the Coming Tax Increase
by David Fessler, Advisory Panelist
Tuesday, August 11, 2009: Issue #1063
Taxes are going to go up. I’m not happy about it, and I’m sure most Americans are as steamed as I am.
But here’s the stark reality: The money Uncle Sam gets from personal taxes, payroll deductions, corporate taxes and various other duties is a little more than half of the money it’s spending. The difference (deficit) has to be made up either by reducing spending, increasing taxes, or both.
It’s an unpleasant reality, but that doesn’t mean we’re helpless against these changes.
Many don’t know why or how much our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) relates to the taxes we all pay. So let’s take a look at how it’s determined and why it’s important. And best of all, how we can even profit from these charges – I mean changes – and make money in the process.
GDP: What is it and Why Should I Care?
Gross Domestic Product – or GDP as it’s most often referred to – is the basic measure of a country’s economic performance.
It’s calculated in a number of ways. One of the most common is the total money spent to purchase the final goods, end products and services produced in one year.
It’s a very big number: In 2008, the International Monetary Fund estimated that the GDP for the entire world was $68.9 trillion. Not too surprisingly, the United States’ share is by far the largest: $14.2 trillion, or about 20.6% of the total.
- It stands to reason that if GDP is rising, economic growth is increasing, unemployment is falling and tax revenue is increasing.
- In the United States, the consumer has historically been responsible for 70% of the nation’s GDP, and that’s what’s sustained our long run of economic growth.
- But now, the consumer’s ATM is tapped out… kaput. He’s now too busy saving and paying down debt (a good thing) to be able to spend money at historical levels.
As a result, GDP – and by extension economic growth – is falling, and unemployment is rising. As a result, federal and state tax revenues are dropping.
So who or what is going to make up the GDP difference? Of course, there’s always the hue and cry of cutting government spending. When was the last time – under any administration – that you actually saw government shrink?
It’s been awhile, but I can assure you that at least at the state and local levels, government is laying off workers and tightening its purse strings. But that won’t be enough: taxes will have to rise to make up the difference.
Our Rising Tax Predicament Was Foreseen in the 19th Century
It’s interesting to note that this scenario was foreseen hundreds of years ago. You see, way back in the 19th century, German economist Adolf Wagner predicted that as societies grew more affluent, taxes would inevitably have to rise. This became known in economic circles as Wagner’s Law.
The reason is simple: A nation’s citizenry ultimately wants more of the things that only its government can easily provide. All those good schools, public order and safety, a strong military, and various public welfare services and Social Security benefits all cost money.
While I’m not a fan of big government, most of these are things the average citizen would have difficulty providing on their own.
Arguments are made all the time that as more social services are provided, there is less incentive for people to work. The reality though, is quite different.
Even when taxes rose sharply – as they did in the early part of the 20th century – from only a couple of percentage points of GDP to the current level (18%), the country still prospered.
Now they will have to rise again, to make up the gap in social service spending. Although there is much ballyhooing about it, the country will still prosper, as most people are quite comfortable from a material standpoint.
So what’s the best way to “play” the inevitable tax increase?
Three Ways To Play The Coming Tax Increase
My answer might surprise you, but I believe there are three sectors that will fill the consumer spending “deficit” and fund an economic recovery: energy, infrastructure and health care.
Both energy and infrastructure will benefit for the next several years from the billions being thrown at the sectors via the stimulus package as well as coming tax increases. We’re just starting to see the first of what will be many large highway, bridge and other infrastructure projects, as well as energy infrastructure undertakings associated with the smart grid.
Regular readers know I follow the first two very closely. Marc Lichtenfeld – an Investment U contributor you’ll be hearing a lot more from in the coming weeks – is an expert on the third. Read about Marc’s ideas on partial profit taking.
- Right now, analysts and most investors are shunning the energy ETFs, many of which are off 25% or more from their highs of last November. Of course, that’s the very reason you should consider taking a position in one.
- Specifically, take iShares Dow Jones U.S. Energy (NYSE: IYE), a fund that seeks to replicate the performance of the Dow Jones Oil and Gas Index. It includes companies in all facets of oil and gas: producers, equipment and distribution.
No one likes higher taxes, but in the coming weeks and months, these three sectors stand to benefit from the coming increase in government spending. We’ll be bringing you more on all three over next few weeks and months.
And remember, there’s always a way to make a profit.
Good investing,
David Fessler
Any investment contains risk. Please see our disclaimer.
5 Responses to “Taxes Are Going Up… Here’s Three Ways to Play the Coming Tax Increase”
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David Fessler is the energy and infrastructure expert for Investment U.
Although known matters, but represented in interest raising fashion.GOOD>
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wonderfull..well written and explained.i fully believe your right.very high on canadian oil sands..and have seen how the world.people.goverments.countries.products.have changed.and always will.. thanks.. ted
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Spend the country rich? Profit from infrastructure while the economy sinks? Do you invest in Zimbabwe? You are talking about building deck chairs on the Titanic after it left port. I hope you put all of your money where your mouth is so the rest of us can at least have a good laugh while we sink.
Go get a government job, Fessler. You truly deserve what is coming for government workers.
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“All the good schools” provided by government. You must be out of your mind. Most college graduates I meet can barely write a cohesive paragraph. A fourth grade McGuffeys Reader is above the level of most college graduates.
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Mr. Fessler should shill for the Obama administration instead of attempting to provide investment advice. His claim that the citizenry demands services that only the government can easily provide short-changes the resourcefulness of the private sector. Other than national defense and local fire and police services, I am hard pressed to identify any other segment of the economy that cannot be more efficiently run by the private sector. Mr. Fessler cites schools as one of the essential public functions. Give me a break! The US public school system is a disgrace. Given choice via vouchers parents overwhelmingly choose private options for their children. The myriad categories of welfare services are rife with inefficiency, fraud, and waste. I am disappointed to find such an overtly “big-government-knows-best” article in Investment U, otherwise a home for Austrian economic thinking. Friedrich Hayek’s soul must be in pain!
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