#trying to think through my ~financial goals~ for 2025 and there's just so much i don't understand or care to know!!!!

[ephemeral-winter]

wow thinking about money stuff beyond my day to day budgeting really stresses me way the hell out!!!!

[rhythmic-idealist]

My friend K has experienced homelessness before, although that was some years ago. I want more than anything for her to never need to experience it again. She is working so goddamn hard.

I’ve run a few fundraisers on Tumblr before. My theory, which has worked so far, is that reaching people who have the means to give money in a mutual aid context is a numbers game—the more eyes this lands in front of, the more people will see it who are in a position with disposable income that they are able to give, and want to give. Times are hard all around. Put on your own oxygen mask first.

Link, if you want me to cut to the chase - and thank you.

K is a queer mom of two. She shares custody with her ex, and custody switches off every two weeks. She used to have a coworker who was watching the children for her when she worked, but that childcare arrangement has fallen through—since November, K has missed two weeks of work every month, since there is no one to watch the kids. This fundraiser exists to try to fund childcare so that she can go to work and catch up.

There is a rent debt. K has a court date on April 21st, 2025. (I am making this post on April 8th, 2025). Adjusted for GoFundMe fees, the rent debt comes out to $6,056.

She cannot afford her current housing. But her old roommates stopped paying rent, and ultimately moved out but only after months and months and months. She and I and a mutual friend all trooped into the ex-roommates’ old room in N95s and gloves and spent a day cleaning up a biohazard. It has been such an awful living situation for her and her kids, and they want to move, but she needs roommates in order to make rent, and every single prospective set of roommates is refusing to live with kids. In our state, it’s illegal for landlords to refuse to rent to someone because of kids, but with roommates the law seems a lot more wiggly—and more importantly even if there is a law, you do not want to coerce roommates into living with children they resent, that would be an unsafe situation.

Thank you for reading this far. K is up shit creek and I don’t know what more to do. I’m more financially stable so I’ve given her money, another friend has given her money, but we are all running dry. She can get things sorted if she is able to work and able to know she isn’t going to lose her home—long enough to get out of this hole, to finally move somewhere cheaper, to find roommates, to get out.

Thank you so much. Again, apply your own oxygen mask first—mutual aid is for you, too, and it is equally good to exist on either side of it. If you have a part of your budget dedicated to donations, I really hope you consider her.

Thank you so much. Reblogs mean the world too. Donations get her out of this, and reblogs help find the donations. I’ll keep you all updated as well as I can.

This goal is high. The math is on GoFundMe. I know it feels insurmountable, and god, she and I were just talking about that. But I think we can do it. I think we can do SOME of it.

Thank you all for sharing. Thank you endlessly anyone who finds yourself in a position to donate. I think we can do at least some of it. If she has the rent debt, the $6,056, that will accomplish a lot.

4/08/25

$0/19,300 (first goal: $6,056)

Again, raising even a portion of this helps. This isn't an all or nothing fundraiser.

Thank you so much for making it this far. Take care, everyone.

I reiterate one more time that all actions are valuable, sharing included, and that mutual aid is for you, too.

Link, one more time.

[bealilyaliceinmarch]

This post is about video games i swear.

2025 has been a really bad year.

I mean, obviously, I'm trans and autistic and live in America, I cried when Trump got reelected for a reason, I knew it meant all the futures I had ever dreamed for myself had been, by popular vote, disintegrated. It meant that whatever bigger picture stuff I had thought I had wanted for myself, some sort of financial stability, the possibility of physical transition, etc, was all gone because the American people wanted, genuinely wanted, a holocaust for illegal immigrants, autistic people, and trans people. And so, those goals would have to be shifted to future generations, I would have to fight to my death for a future I would never see even the barest minimum of.

So yeah. All of that. Beyond that, however, this year has sucked in alot of other ways for me.

In what has been the worst possible timing, all of my closest friends, all for legitimate (capitalism mostly) reasons, have been incredibly difficult to contact and connect with, so I have felt deeply alone. My sense of community is frayed. The two senses of community I have left, a local queer organization and a local friend group, literally hate each other and it makes me want to pull my skin off. So, my plans, very very basic plans of: getting a job over summer, working a part time during my last semester, and then working a full time after to hopefully move out to a shitty apartment with at least one other person, seem increasingly out of reach, both from the political state of things, and the social isolation. I also figured out that i hate my major! And have now pivoted to a different concentration to hopefully make my final semester feel not horrid. In summary, everything in my life, related or otherwise, has fallen apart.

With this all in mind, I've had to find something to keep me sane. If only because I know a conservative will masterbate on my grave if I succumb to everything. So I've turned to something I really didn't want to have to, because it signifies another section of my life where I felt incredibly isolated and alone: video games. I've gotten into other media as well, but, videos games have been something that has made the last month in specific bearable. So, I wanna talk about some of the games I've been into and why I think they are neat, and also spotlight some games that I'm particularly excited for.

Pre-2025 Games:

Deltarune

My previous post is about my wierd relationship to Undertale and it's related media, but i have done the self reflection necessary for me to like this game. It rules. Chapter 1 not as much as chapter 2 but still.

Terraria

I started to get back into it when I thought I was going to be able to play with my best friends. That hope has very much died but I'm still at a point where I'm playing it again.

2025

Wanderstop

I have talked to my therapist about this game. It really has redefined my relationship to work, and given me license to take breaks and not destroy myself under the weight of my own expectations. The world is already trying to crush me, why should I be doing the same? Obviously, i have to work, and am applying for summer jobs right now, but it's still brought alot of good perspective. It's also just very well written, with characters I'm not soon to let out of my heart. I wish more people were talking about it, but I think alot of people were dissapointed that it was so different from the writer's prior work and so intentionally unresolving.

April 2025

I barely play games upon release, so it has been a truly novel experience to, through the magic of my dad's gamepass, play two of the greatest games I've ever played as they have come out.

Blue Prince

This is a puzzle game. Take the room card mechanics from the board game Betrayal, slap em on a Rogue-Like, and put in puzzles to rival Myst? You get absolute fire is what you get. This game consumed me for a good while, and it was a super novel experience. I haven't been playing it "right," I've been looking up solutions and things when the solution is "through RNG, get the magnifying glass, get this specific room, find this specific picture frame, profit," or I've just been really stuck, but this game is so new I've yet to ruin literally anything for myself by doing this because all the guides has been so deeply barebones. Hell, the chess puzzle guide i pulled up was just wrong, and I had to act check it before doing the puzzle. Still, I've had a blast and only slowed down playing it when I thought I broke the game. (If you know what "room repellent" is high five.) I'm still not done with it yet, but I'm excited to keep plunging deeper into the manor's secrets.

Clair Obscure: Expedition 33

I have been deeply excited for this game since the trailer that showed it was a fucking turn based RPG. In a world where you can seemingly only make those in pixel art or anime style, this looked like such a breath of fresh air. (No shade on jrpgs, P5R literally in my top 5 of all time, but I don't like role-playing as a high schooler at this point in my life.) And holy shit, has it yet to dissapoint. It is so French. I LOVE HOW FRENCH IT IS. I'm in a mime costume with a baguette on my back and I am living. The combat is a super cool mix of turned based and action, kinda the opposite way that FF7 Remake Trilogy is, and it's made every encounter consistently fun and exciting. The systems are super deep, I love the characters, gaahhh. A small thing that is specific to me: I've never played an older Final Fantasy game long enough to get to the world map. The active time battle system of those games just kinda... doesn't do it for me. So, this is my first time experiencing a game with this kind of world and... WHY DID THIS GO AWAY?! It's super fun I enjoy it alot.

Future Games 2025

Now i want to talk about some games I'm excited about that are coming this year and will hopefully augment my sanity.

Demon Tides

This is the sequel thing to Demon Turf, a 3D platformer i like alot but never finished because it was a little too frustrating at times. I honestly wasn't super excited by the reveal trailer of this, because i felt it was removing one of the strongest aspects of Demon Turf: it's Paper Mario-esque artsyle (don't know what it's called.) But after playing the demo- the expanded moveset and the way they have used the new artsyle have sold me. It still has a TON of character, and seems super fun.

Mewgenics

I'm a big Binding of Isaac head. I watched Northernlion nearly daily for three years of high school. I've done my time. Obviously, I'm excited for the new game. Every trailer that comes out adds an asterisk to that excitement, because I find the eugenics we do to domesticated animals really icky and this game leans pretty heavy into that, but I'm reasonably sure that this will be a like Isaac where it isn't condoning eugenics (like Isaac isn't condoning religious trauma) but that theme can dissappear under the gameplay loop at times. This is skewing negative, I'm quite excited. I'm not a big tactics RPG gal, but given how deeply into Isaac i got I'm sure Edmund can pull me in. Also the music slaps.

Deltarune

What can I even say.

Games without posted release dates

Don't Stop, Girlypop!

This seems like my kind of cringe. I got super into Doom 2016 like 5 years ago and always thought it had a criminally low amount of female centric y2k nostalgia.

Pony Island 2

Inscryption is one of my favorite games.

Dreamsettler

Hypnospace Outlaw is one of my favorite games.

Project C

This has writing credits from Michael Lutz, a creative at really respect. My favorite works of his are his podcast (along with Cameron Kunzelman) Homestuck Made This World (i swear it's great even for not Homestuck fans,) and all of the works i have discovered through his website correlatedcontents.com like Patrick and 'scrow. Him having a writing credit is enough for me to be excited.

So, that's it. The sparks that light up the dark world i live in right now. This year Is truly a great year for video games, which is wild given its sucks for everything else. I hope yall have found your little joys as well, and if you haven't... maybe one of these can be that for you.

[connormg]

My Goals for 2025!

Yeah, I know we're in February. But I've only just launched this Patreon account and in my defence, this post was created in January (just saying).

A few days after New Years, it suddenly occurred to me that I’ve never made any New Year's resolutions like the vast majority of people. I guess I’ve never really seen the point. My general goal has always been to try and make the next year better than the last. But is that enough? From personal experience, I would have to say the answer’s probably no. Maybe this is because I’ve never actually made a plan for how I'll achieve this goal, and where’s that ever gotten me? I think what I’m starting to realise is that if you want something to change, the next step is to actually change something.

I’m not going to start making New Year's resolutions this year, but I’m going to try and formulate some sort of plan to achieve certain goals throughout the year. But I’m going to need your help! I’ve always been one for procrastinating and starting something that I never go on to finish. 2025 is going to be the year that that’s going to change and it’s going to be because of you and me. I’m going to put in the work to turn a lot of things around, and you’re going to make sure that I follow through and complete all my goals. You’re going to hold me accountable throughout 2025!

They’re not going to be earth-shattering goals. I’m not going to claim that I'll travel the world or become a millionaire because neither of these are attainable (this year). But that doesn’t mean that I’m not going to be just a tiny bit ambitious. When we both evolve and grow ourselves, things will evolve and grow around us (that’s what I believe at least). For the first time in a long time, I think I’m in a position where I want things to evolve and grow. Previously, I’ve been more than content in the limbo of believing I wanted change without actually being ready for it. But, just maybe, I might be ready now.

So, my 10 goals for 2025 are;

1. Complete the first draft of my fantasy novel

It’s three years last month since I had the idea that sparked my love for writing once more. The idea has evolved and taken shape over three years, sometimes frustrating both me and those around to no end. There have been more revisions than I care to count or admit, and the world it’s become probably couldn’t be further from the one it started out as. All that being said, one of my main goals for 2025 is to finally finish my first draft and begin to look for a literary agent to eventually have it published sometime in the near future.

Whilst I might keep the deep-lying details to myself (sorry in advance), I’ll be practically always talking about it and keeping everyone updated on its progress, so make sure you all remind me of this come December later this year.

2. Find acceptable financial security

This feels like one of the most significant goals for this year as it would take the most progress and make the most change. I won’t lie, my aspiration is for the blog and all other branches to make some sort of steady income whilst also aiming to go on and become a successful author. My imagination is my best asset and it's truly the only thing I really understand. I’ve also found that I work better as my own boss (I can’t be the only one who thinks they work better than their own boss, surely?)

When I say that I aim to have some sort of financial security, I don’t mean that I’m aiming to have enough money to buy or rent my own house or anything (although that would be nice). I mean it in a way so that I can buy presents for people on their birthdays and Christmas without having to accept well-meaning handouts. Of course I appreciate the sentiment, but the reminder that I don’t have much money is never a good feeling.

To read more FOR FREE, go visit my Patreon patreon.com/ConnorMG

[a-d-nox]

hello, nox! how are you doing? very well, i hope. i’d like to join i ask game, please!

my initials are DCO and a goal of mine for the next year is to not let my fear paralyze me from doing the things i want to do, like expose my art, put myself out there and find people who are aligned with me. this year was very transformative and so many things happened in a way that kinda broke me into a new person but at the same time i think it was one of the best years i ever had, i feel different!

the option i choose is the 🍾 (pop) one! thank you for doing this game and thank you for all your hard work, your blog is very helpful for my studies and i wish the new year bring you amazing and beautiful things, that you achieve your goals or at least get close to it, also i want to say that i recently found your spotify playlists and omg you have an impeccable taste!! have a great week ahead of you, wish you all the best 💕

clocking no. 39

i am doing okay - i spent the day remapping my financial savings, 401k, cds, etc. i am trying to get organized for 2025 per se - setting up some stuff for longggg term goals like buying a house haha. thank you so much for the praise both on my blog and spotify (over 45k mins listened this year)! and congrats on your rebirth - which we will be on the reading today because the 3.5 card flew out first!

start of 2025 -> 3.5 - i am being reminded of trinities - sun/moon/rising, first/middle/last, birth/life/death, mind/body/spirit, etc. its all about the way things come together to make you you - DNA and otherwise. more importantly it is about uniqueness and finding your voice. you will be doing more of the same at the beginning of next year!

end of 2024 -> 9.2 - just something to remember at this time of the year - if you want to be different, you have to act different. so look at things in a new light - you can't doing the same things you do where you currently live abroad. that just means you moved parallel when you are looking to move forward. you did great things for your growth this year - appreciate yourself!

what's changing for you in 2025 -> 2.5 - you gotta use whats right in front of you to make it through the remainder of the year. know that you made your best effort this year. talk with people outside of your immediate surroundings for some perspective! work life balance is going to be important - enjoy your holidays worry a bit less about work.

the work you will have to do -> 2.4 - you are going to have to learn to trust the universe... all the right paths are leading you to all the right places despite you maybe feeling otherwise this coming year. learn to be more patient with life. what is might for you will not miss you.

-a.d.

[cruz-regina-d-journal]

07: Goal Digger

When we are talking about goals we usually think of something we want only for ourselves. It’s exciting to think of what you can be in the future and what you will have as well, but sometimes some people tend to forget that we still need to make an action before we get something we want. We keep on saying that we want this and that but we don’t even make a move on how to get it. Honestly, the past “Regina” was like that. My mind focuses only on my desires, and we can relate this to Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory which are the id, ego, and superego. Our id says “I want it now!” as our superego says “You still can’t have it because you don’t have money yet”, they battle around our mind until our ego says “Okay, kids, let’s study well, find work, earn money and buy what we want”. In every goal we have, there is always a process that we need to get into. We can’t have anything in an instant! Even at opening our phone, we still need to wait and do something in order to open it, and that is to press the power button. In life we also have actions like opening the power button, but the thing is we need to open ourselves. We need to step out of our comfort zone and find ways on how to achieve our goals.

Since I was a kid, my parents buy me planners and notebooks because I love writing, drawing and putting my goals in it. I have this one perpetual planner that I still update whenever I want or got something, and it always gives me this wonderful feeling at any time my plans worked or have gotten well than I expected it to be. And today it really took me a long time to know what I want to have; maybe because I feel down due to this pandemic and my family experienced a huge deal of a problem related to this year’s stumbling block which made me worry about my future. Nevertheless, I’m glad that we’re now okay and I finally conquered those mind-boggling thoughts. The pictures here  show my short and long term goals that I’ve been thinking since June 2020. I’m sharing this things to you because I think I will be needing your support and guidance 😁 Let’s bring each other to the top!

SHORT TERM GOALS

OBJECTIVE 1: Grow a Plant

TIME FRAME: August 28, 2020-October 5, 2020

RESOURCES: Shovel, seed, pot, healthy soil and water

TASKS: 

Choose the right container for your plant and put the healthy soil in it.

Plant the see at the proper depth and water it with a room-temperature water.

Maintain a consistent moisture and keep the soil warm.

Apply fertilizer every week, give the plant enough sunlight and circulate air.

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Be patient and don’t forget your tasks! 

REASON: I’ve been trying to grow a plant since I was in elementary, but I don’t know why they always wilt. I love plants but I don’t think they love me 😢

OBJECTIVE 2: Bond with my Friends and Family

TIME FRAME: March 2020-July 2020

RESOURCES: Love, happiness, understanding and self

TASKS:

Focus your time with them.

Don’t use phones, engage with them through personal interactions

Make them feel loved/important and laugh with them

Always listen to their stories and respond appropriately

Treasure the moment

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Make time with them and don’t forget to enjoy it!

REASON: As I entered college I noticed that I rarely bond with my other friends and my family because I’m studying at Manila during weekdays. I don’t have a free time whenever I go home to Cavite because I use my weekends for doing my school works and sleeping to regain the energy I’ve used during school days. I feel sad that I failed to divide my time for academics and for enjoying life. And now that it’s finally over, I think that this is a great opportunity to recoup my scantiness.

OBJECTIVE 3: Eat Eggs 5x a month

TIME FRAME: August 13, 2020-October 13,2020

RESOURCES: Eggs, pan, plate and utensils

TASKS:

Eat egg once every week.

Ask your family to not cook eggs for you when you’ve eaten once that week.

Avoid eating soft-cooked eggs.

Find an alternative food when tempted.

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Self-regulation

REASON: My asthma will kick me when I eat too much eggs! 😢 I have an allergy for excessive food, and I want to practice myself to eat egg once a week so that I can restrain myself without any trouble or some kind of temptation.

OBJECTIVE 4: Be a Reading Volunteer

TIME FRAME: September 2020-November 2020

RESOURCES: Book, camera and other gadgets

TASKS:

Pick books that have good life lessons

Look for the age recommendation and mention this

Record yourself reading 

Let people see the book you’re currently reading

Put emotions as you read, let your audience feel what the characters in the book are feeling

Engage with them even in a recorded video (ex. asking questions)

Think of a line that will make a great impact to your audience regarding the lesson of the story 

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Enjoy and engage with your audience

REASON: I am a member of PNU Reading Society and I want to officially become a reading volunteer to help students with their lifelong literacy skills that will empower their learning and also to support those people who are falling behind about reading. 

OBJECTIVE 5: Buy new Optical Glasses

TIME FRAME: January 10, 2020: 1:00PM-3:00PM

RESOURCES: Money, optical frame and receipt

TASKS:

Go to Starfinder Optical Shop at SM

Go to SoYou section and look if there’s a discount (if there is)

Choose an optical frame. Keep in mind the shape of the lens you wat and need, and also its weight

Give the chosen frame to the sales rep. and get your waiting number

Wait for your ophthalmologist to call you before you go in the room

When called, sit properly and let the ophthalmologist check you eyes

Perform the said activities

Observe the weight of the lenses 

Make sure that you picked the right graded lenses

Wait for your optical glasses for 1 hour (and so) 

Present your receipt to the sales rep. and wait for him/her to give your glasses with free case

Wear your glasses to see if it’s okay and check if there’s any damages before leaving

Note: Don’t forget to say thank you!

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Be patient, honest and critical thinker

REASON: I need new glasses because my current one is kind of dirty and is not accurate anymore as months pass by. Inaccurate graded lenses will make me suffer to headaches and dizziness making me hard to study and move.

LONG TERM GOALS

OBJECTIVE 1: Graduate from College

TIME FRAME: July 2019-November 2023

RESOURCES: Perseverance, Time Management and Patience

TASKS: 

Always listen to your professor/speaker

Engage with people around you

Do your tasks correctly as instructed and submit it as soon as possible

Make a to-do list 

Take important notes and organize them all

When there’s an exam, review 2 weeks ahead the test day

Ask questions for clarifications

Join organizations and seminars 

Grab once in a lifetime opportunities

Cry but stand up again when you fail

Believe in yourself 

Dedicate yourself to your course 

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Grit

REASON: Honestly, I want to graduate with latin honors but something struck me and thought that to graduate from college should be my main goal. Honor rolls are just bonuses of your hard work. It is obvious that I want to graduate from college to help my family and give them things that they need and want as well. I want to give them a thank you gift for providing me everything that I needed for years.

OBJECTIVE 2: Open a Business

TIME FRAME: January 2025-January 2029

RESOURCES: Money(Capital), manpower, product/service, promotion, patience, determination and connections

TASKS: 

Think of a business that is unique where many customers will be attracted

Create a solid business plan with your chosen strategy

Make a website or Facebook/Instagram Page about your business

Be approachable to gain customers

Advertise your product/service

When the business grew bigger, register your business name at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)

Register with Barangay and present valid IDs

Register your business to your city mayor’s office (LGU)

Register with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)

Remember to always check your financial status

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Patience, Analytical skill, Accounting, Problem Solving and Communication & Negotiation

REASON: I was an ABM student before and I want to make use of my skills to help my family and those people who need financial assistance. Opening a business was also part of my dreams. Not only that it will help me to gain more money for my post-graduate, but I want to invest my small money from my teaching profession to something that I can make use to the present and future. Nevertheless, having a business will not stop me from teaching.

OBJECTIVE 3: Become a Doctor

TIME FRAME: August 2024-November 2028

RESOURCES: Money, grit, school supplies, experiences and books

TASKS:

Look for a medical school (preferably: De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute)

Take the MCAT (Medical College Application Test)

Focus on your studies to be a Psychiatrist

Earn a Doctor of Medicine and complete your residency

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Patience, Empathy, Focus, Practical & Decision-Making Skills and Time Management 

REASON: I had this late bloomer moment. Before entering college I was confused on what I really want to be. Not that I am boasting but I had this mindset before that any courses will do because I thought I can do everything. My top choices are Architecture, Accountancy, Teaching, and Medical. I chose teaching since there’s a time that I became super inspired of my Senior High School professor and I noticed that from the past few years of my life, I never experienced a class with an excellent Filipino teacher who really took a course of Filipino, and that’s why I want to became one. As I became a BFE Student, I still want to pursue my medical dream. I want to be more useful to my people even if it will take me thousand years to be a 100%.

OBJECTIVE 4: Buy a New House

TIME FRAME: July 2024-July 2026

RESOURCES: Money and communication

TASKS:

Know your budget for your house and stick to it. DON’T EXCEED TO YOUR ESTIMATION!

Research subdivisions or areas that are accessible to buy your needs and public transportation

Get prequalified and preapproved for credit for your mortgage

Find a nice and approachable real estate agent

Start touring to subdivisions or areas that you already searched (Make sure to check every detail of the house especially the water and electrical system and always consider the people who will live with you)

Make an offer

After building the house, get a home inspection and check if there are structural damages before transferring (if there are, contact your real estate agent)

Make sure to pay your monthly bill and coordinate your paperwork

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Hard working, Critical Thinking, Observance and Patience

REASON: I don’t want to be dependent of my family’s money and belongings. I want to buy my own place for my family, and if blessed, I am glad to share my payments with my partner to build our new life together. If my parents want to stay with me, I will let them stay there as well, but if they prefer to stay at our old house, then I’ll support for the renovation of our old house. 

OBJECTIVE 5: Live a Healthy Life

TIME FRAME: August 2020-August 2025

RESOURCES: Healthy food and balanced diet

TASKS: 

Be physically active

Eat a healthy rich diet

Drink vitamins

Do yoga and exercises

Make time with friends and focus in the present

SUCCESS CRITERIA: Self-regulation and willingness

REASON: I have a weak body and I want to practice a healthy life until I get used to it and became my normal habit. I am not a fan of junk food but I still think that I’m not living a healthy life today because I refuse to exercise. But now that I noticed that it is important to take care of yourself and we need these kind of things to prevent us from being sick, I finally told myself that I have to change this kind of lifestyle and start to be healthy; not only physically but also mentally.

[mikemortgage]

Aggressive response at significant cost: Businesses approve of Liberal measures, but yearn for U.S.-style tax cuts

Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s much anticipated bid to boost Canadian competitiveness will go some distance toward countering aggressive U.S. tax reforms and injecting new life into a sluggish business landscape, business leaders and economists say.

In crafting his fall economic statement, Morneau was expected to counter two headline reforms in the U.S.: measures allowing the full and immediate write off of investments in machinery and equipment, and a deep cut to the corporate tax rate — enough to wipe out Canada’s long-held advantage.

The minister addressed at least one of those concerns, matching the U.S. write offs and extending them until 2024, two years longer than they will be available south of the border.

Kevin Carmichael: Morneau’s regulation pledge is so audacious it might be unCanadian

Morneau said his fiscal update would fix our competitiveness problem. He was wrong

Jack Mintz: Who cares about competitiveness? Judging by Morneau's update, the Liberals don't

“The focus here was trying to improve Canadian competitiveness and that’s a positive step in the right direction,” said Doug Porter, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets. “But the cost is significant. I might not have used all my chips on one measure. I might also have reduced corporate income tax by a percentage point. But we’ll see how it works.”

For Canadian manufacturers and those who sell to them, the new ability to immediately deduct the full cost of machinery and equipment is “only a good thing,” said Rob Wildeboer, executive chairman of Martinrea International Inc.

“We like to be close to our customers and our customers determine where to set up their businesses based on the entire cost package,” he said. “So if they can write off investments that just makes things here more attractive for them.”

But write offs are just one consideration in attracting companies to establish operations in Canada, he added.

“If this is about Canadian competitiveness, well there are a lot of things that go into that,” Wildeboer said. “One is the corporate tax rate, another is the carbon tax.”

In all, the new federal write offs will lower government revenues by $14 billion and deepen annual deficits.

The measures come just in time for Calgary-based Pieridae Energy Ltd., which is looking to build a $10-billion liquefied natural gas project in Nova Scotia.

“Generally speaking, I think it would be a good thing,” said Alfred Sorensen, president and CEO of Pieridae. “It would help put us on a level playing field with the LNG terminals in the United States.”

Another measure that caught Sorensen’s eye was the government’s willingness to provide a 100-per-cent deduction for clean energy equipment, as Pieridae has been considering installing equipment at its proposed LNG facility that recycles waste heat into electricity.

“That would probably have a significant impact on our decision to install that type of equipment,” Sorensen said.

In addition to the write offs for manufacturers, a new Accelerated Investment Incentive will allow all companies in all sectors to triple the current allowable deductions on both “tangible” assets, such as buildings, and “intangible” assets like intellectual property.

“It took a bit longer than might have been expected, but these measures should help address the competitiveness challenge by incentivizing further investment,” wrote Brian DePratto, senior economist at TD Bank Group, in a note to clients.

As part of a goal to increase exports by 50 per cent by 2025, the government will also dedicate $1.1 billion toward measures aimed at opening new markets for Canadian firms. Much of that money will go toward improving marine ports and other transportation capacity.

Another $800 million will go into the “Strategic Innovation Fund”, supporting “innovative investments” across the country — a measure that had been on the wish list for Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters’ president Dennis Darby.

“This fund helps companies expand and we know a problem we have in Canada is getting businesses from a small to medium size,” Darby said. “Overall this is a good budget. We didn’t get a commitment to overall tax reductions but we’ll keep pushing for that.”

Under measures that took effect in January, U.S. President Donald Trump slashed the combined U.S. federal and subnational corporate tax rate to 26 per cent from 39 per cent, compared to Canada’s combined provincial and federal rate of 26.7 per cent.

That measure, combined with the full and immediate write offs on equipment and machinery, has sparked a huge wave of investment south of the border, said Robert Hattin, chief executive of ProVantage Automation in Ancaster, Ont.

“It’s an industrial economy like I haven’t seen in 20 years,” said Hattin, whose firm sells factory automation products to customers in Canada, the United States and Mexico. “And the capital expenditure write offs are a huge motivator for people. All the multinationals we work with have been redirecting the bulk of their capital to the U.S.”

There were incentives for the beleaguered mining sector as well, in the form of the extension of the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit.

Glenn Mullan, president of the Prospectors and Developer’s Association, said the tax credit is a “huge win” for miners, and a sign that the government recognizes the importance of the mining sector. The new rules mean exploration companies can extend tax credit from one year currently to at least five years, which should spur more mineral exploration, Mullan said.

Passed in 2000, the METC is designed to encourage investment in mineral exploration by allowing companies to pass tax credits to investors. According to Mullan, two-thirds of all mineral exploration in Canada is funded through METC investments.

“Now for the first time, we have a five-year time horizon,” said Mullan. “That’s very good for the most junior companies because they can do much more financial and strategic planning than ever before.”

“A one year horizon was problematic from the beginning,” he added. “Mineral exploration is a long process, not too many people discover a mine in their first summer of work.”

For Demetrius Tsafaridis, whose Burlington firm CareGo sells robotics and automation equipment, the U.S. reforms prompted a major shift in his customer base. While his 2017 sales were split equally on either side of the border, this year, 90 per cent of them are in the U.S.

“There’s no question there’s been a huge surge in business for us in the U.S. because of the tax changes,” he said. “But this move from our government today is a very aggressive response. The companies that are here and aggressively want to grow will jump all over this. This gives them an immediate recovery and it makes it much easier for companies like mine to sell to them.

But when it comes to convincing new companies to establish a footprint in Canada, the move may not be enough, he said.

“Longer term they’ll have to do something about the tax rate because companies aren’t going to invest here over the U.S. if our taxes are higher.”

With files from Gabriel Friedman and Geoffrey Morgan

• Email: npowell@nationalpost.com | Twitter: naomi_powell

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