The Westin Dragonara Resort was named ‘Malta’s Leading Resort for 2017’ at the World Travel Awards Europe Gala Ceremony 2017 in St Petersburg in the Marble Hall of the Russian Museum of Ethnography.
Nominees in the World Travel Awards are voted for by travel and tourism professionals, and business and leisure travel consumers worldwide. This accolade recognises the commitment to excellence that an organisation has demonstrated in the past 12 months.
Every year these awards turn the spotlight on some of the world’s most sought-after hotels and resorts. This year it was the Westin Dragonara Resort’s turn to be gifted with such a prestigious achievement.
“We are pleased to win ‘Malta’s Leading Resort’ award, which is an affirmation and encouragement of our efforts by all associates over the past year,” said Michael Camilleri Kamsky, general manager of the Westin Dragonara Resort. “This award will only further our commitment to provide guests with a memorable experience.”
Earlier this year, the Westin Dragonara Resort was also recognised as one of the Top 100 ‘most loved’ hotels globally by Hotels.com.
Global Capital registers higher profit in first half of 2017
Global Capital plc made a pre-tax profit of €2.38 million for the first six months of 2017, compared to €1.89 million for the same period in 2016, representing an increase of €0.49 million in comparative terms.
Global Capital plc CEO Reuben Zammit said that the contribution of Global Capital Life Insurance Ltd towards the consolidated profit before taxation amounted to €1.26 million, compared to €0.70 million between January and June of 2016. Mr Zammit attributed the increase in the value of in-force business for the period under review, which reached €1.21 million, to “continued efforts by our management and staff at all levels aimed at registering sustained levels of new business”.
According to a company statement, investor risk appetite was confident during the first six months of 2017, while risk assets, in particular equities and high-yield bonds, outperformed other investments during the period. As a result of the positive performance of these and other components of the investment portfolio, Global Capital saw an 11 per cent overall increase in investment income when compared to the first six months of 2016.
During the period under review, Global Capital Financial Management Ltd registered an improved level of activity, accompanied by an increase in operational costs. This, together with enhancements to the company’s provisioning policy, led to a profit before taxation of €131,607, compared to € 7,169 for the six-month period ending June 2016. The health insurance agency’s commission income improved marginally when compared to the corresponding period last year. On the other hand, the increase in claims and medical costs contributed to a reduction of the profit before taxation for this unit, to €390,339 compared to € 608, 442 in the first half of 2016.
MIT course on tax treaties
The Malta Institute of Taxation is organising an ‘Advanced course on the interpretation and application of tax treaties’. The course consists of nine sessions of two hours each held on a weekly basis starting as from October 11 (resulting in the allocation of 18 CPE hours).
In July, the OECD published its draft update to the OECD Model Tax Convention together with an updated commentary. This 2017 update consists primarily of the adoption of amendments that have previously been approved as part of the OECD BEPS Project, of which Malta was a participating member, and which were foreseen as part of the follow-up work on the treaty-related BEPS measures. If adopted, these amendments could have a significant impact on the manner in which Malta’s growing tax treaty network is currently interpreted.
The course will adopt a practical approach on the application of these provisions, particularly in light of the proposed 2017 amendments.
For more information visit http://maintax.org .