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Nick Buckles, Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We were deeply disappointed that we had significant issues with the London 2012 Olympics contract and are very grateful to the military and the police for their support in helping us to deliver a safe and secure Games. The overall business has performed well in achieving a similar underlying profit as the first half of last year despite economic challenges, particularly in Europe, and weakness in the US government market. Underlying organic growth in the first half has improved to over 5% overall driven by a strong performance in developing markets which grew by over 10%. We continue to see good opportunities from outsourcing around the world particularly from governments looking to improve quality of services and reduce costs and we believe that, with our long-term track record, we will continue to play a major role in this sector. The breadth of our portfolio in 125 countries continues to present many new growth opportunities. Our market leading businesses, broad customer base and £3.8bn per annum contract pipeline give us confidence in the outlook for the Group."

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=20120828070017H6539

The embattled chief executive of G4S said he was still unable to provide answers about why the company’s Olympics security contract went so badly wrong as he revealed associated losses could run beyond £50m. Nick Buckles said he was taking “each week at a time” as he battles to save his job and repair the reputation in Britain of the FTSE 100 company after it failed to provide all 10,400 security guards it had agreed to under its contract with the Government. Commenting as G4S booked a £50m loss against the contract, he admitted the debacle could have a major impact on G4S’s ability to win future contracts from the Government. But Mr Buckles claimed he could not comment on what happened – despite the end of the Olympics – until PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has completed a review on behalf of the company’s board, which is due in the second half of September, according to The Telegraph.

The business environment in second half of 2012 will continue to be challenging with the global economic uncertainty and slow growth in China and Chinese medical reforms proposing to lower drug prices would force the industry to further consolidate. Even with the softened economy, the China healthcare and pharmaceutical markets are projected to grow at 15-20% per annum in the foreseeable future. The outcome for the year as a whole is going to depend upon the Group continuing to benefit from the growth shown by Lansen as well as Haotian delivering an improved performance, which will be dependent upon the final phases of the inositol project being completed to plan. The Group continues to explore investment opportunities that would strategically fit into its existing businesses and compliment the overall product portfolio. Within Lansen, the investment focus will be on broadening its product portfolio in the rheumatology space via its current development product pipeline; and through potential business collaborations and product acquisitions; and expanding its sales and distribution network to second and third tier China cities. Botai will continue to work on the commercial launch of its product and on building a competitive market share.

Commenting on the interim results, Mr. Lee Jin-Yi, CEO of Cathay International Holdings Limited, said: "Despite the slow growth seen across China's economy, and also in the pharmaceutical sector, Cathay achieved 25.6% top-line growth in the first half this year. This significantly outperformed the local market and growth was largely driven by Lansen's core rheumatoid drug sales, the positive results of the repositioning of the hotel and a carefully managed cost base across the Group. Our performance was, however, dragged by Haotian. Haotian is going into the pre-operating phase of the inositol project, preparing for the full-scale operation. Botai is working towards market launch of its collagen injectable filler. While we have entered the second half of the year with a cautiously optimistic approach bolstered by the 15-20% projected growth rates for the healthcare and pharmaceutical market in China that should benefit Lansen; the outlook of the Group will also depend on Haotian's inositol project being completed to plan. We remain committed to exploring investment opportunities that strategically fit well with the Group's strategy and remain focused on driving our business forward in order to deliver value for our shareholders."

Hong Kong, 29 August 2012 - Cathay International Holdings Ltd. (LSE: CTI.L), an investment holding company and a leading investor in the growing healthcare sector in the People's Republic of China, today announces its Interim Results for the six months ended 30 June 2012. Group · Revenues increased by 25.6% to USD48.4 million (2011: USD38.5 million) · Gross profit increased by 21.4% to USD24.4 million (2011: USD20.1 million) · Operating profit grew by 1.7% to USD3.8 million (2011: USD3.7 million) · Net profit decreased to USD2.2 million (2011: USD2.9 million)

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201208290923069777K

The pattern continues

Tempus also sees some value in John Laing Infrastructure Fund which buys assets like hospitals from initial investors, then absorbs all the lovely income from running them. JLIF’s speciality is public sector projects which provide an almost guaranteed income stream and the stock has produced a 13% return since launch 18 months ago. With the forward yield 5.6% and asset value growth offering upside potential, JLIF is “attractive”.

In the Times the Tempus column is impressed with office space provider Regus. Its north American division is doing well in the recession as corporates look to extract themselves from long leases and enter into temporary arrangements. Occupancy rates at mature offices have risen to 85.9% while revenues “per desk” have gained 2.4%. So far so good. The problem is the UK where costs and taxes are expensive. Nevertheless, yielding 3% and trading at just 12 times earnings Regus is a buy, if you “buy into the basic premise”.

In the Telegraph, the Questor column assesses textile services firm Berendsen, which provides laundry and linen rental to customers such as hotels in the UK, continental Europe and the Nordics. The exposure to Europe is a slight problem - with revenues having slipped 2% in the first half - but profits surged 21%. The shares trade on just 10.4 times this year’s earnings; that’s enough for Questor to maintain its buy rating.

Christopher Hyman, Chief Executive of Serco Group plc, said: "I am pleased with the overall performance of the business over the last six months, particularly the quality and efficiency of the services delivered by our people. As we continue to build Serco's international portfolio, our newly established global Business Process Outsourcing division has already seen a high level of contract wins and many with private sector customers. Our business in Australasia and the Middle East continues to grow strongly and, while significant challenges in the US remain, we see conditions in the UK starting to improve. The recent level of new contract wins across the group will help us deliver the anticipated strong financial performance in the second half of the year."

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=20120829070000P5E96

Outsourcing group Serco was hit by tough markets and reorganising costs in the first half but said it expected a strong showing in the second. Revenue was up 4.3% to £2.3bn, with adjusted pre-tax profit down 17.4% to £102.1m. Organic revenue, which strips out acquisitions and currency effects, dropped by 2.1%. Ignoring reorganisation costs, profits were down 4.7% to £117.8m, with the company citing challenging US market conditions.

Valuation: Over 100p Assuming the efficient evolution of operations from Kalsaka to Sega and the successful execution of the Baomahun mine plan, which is on track to produce first gold in FY15, Edison estimates a current value to investors from future potential dividends of US$1.62 (£1.02) per share after exploration expenditure (at a long-term gold price of US$1,350/oz and a discount rate of 10% to reflect general equity risk). This rises to US$2.06 (£1.30) in FY16 and also to US$2.38 (£1.51) at a gold price of US$1,600/oz. Exploration assets (past and future) could be worth an additional c 78- 136c per share

http://www.edisoninvestmentresearch.co.uk/researchreports/Cluff290812update.pdf

Shares in Primary Health Properties are near their top of the trading range seen over the last year. However, the yield still looks attractive. In the six months to June, rental income from the group’s portfolio rose 6.3% to £16m, with pre-tax profits falling to £4.2m from £12m. This fall is unconcerning. It was down to a much larger revaluation of the company’s property portfolio in the first half of last year and higher finance charges. Stripping out the revaluation gain, operating profit was up 6.5% to £13.4m. Importantly, the dividend was raised to 9.25p from 9p and it will be made on Oct 6. The shares have a prospective yield of 5.5% rising to 5.6% in 2013. The main reason to hold the shares is as an income play, but there should be capital gains over time as the portfolio grows. The group has a “significant pipeline” of opportunities and £49m is in the hands of solicitors for the purchase of “high quality medical centre assets”. Demand for new, modern facilities should be driven by the Health and Social Care Act 2012 with the commissioning of primary care service into the hands of GPs. Buy for income, Questor says.

Yes is an interesting read http://www.edisoninvestmentresearch.co.uk/researchreports/gemfields280812update.pdf

Outlook Copper and gold have remained relatively stable since the period end, with copper continuing to trade around the 340 cents per pound level, and gold at just over US$1,600 per ounce. The molybdenum price continued to decline in July and August, decreasing from US$13 per pound at 30 June 2012 to just under US$11 per pound in mid-August. While the copper price has declined by more than 10% since the end of April, it has found good support at around the 330 - 340 cents per pound level, indicating relatively robust demand to provide support for the price at levels well above the current industry marginal cost of production. The industry fundamentals remain strong over the medium term, with the supply-side remaining relatively constrained. The Group's forecast for 2012 full year production remains as approximately 700,000 tonnes of copper, 280,000 ounces of gold and 11,000 tonnes of molybdenum. Esperanza production is expected to be at the lower end of the original forecast range, but this is expected to be offset by production at Los Pelambres and El Tesoro being marginally higher than originally forecast. The forecast for 2012 full year weighted average pre-credit cash costs also remains unchanged at 165 cents per pound. Average net cash costs are now expected to be approximately 110 cents per pound compared with the original forecast of 105 cents, mainly due to lower gold market prices.

Diego Hernandez, Chief Executive Officer of Antofagasta Minerals S.A. commented: "The Group's performance in the first half of 2012 has underlined the quality of the Group's asset base. We have continued to deliver strong volume growth, with copper production increasing by 16.5% to 336,000 tonnes, and gold production almost doubling to 136,100 ounces. These increases are primarily due to increased production from Esperanza, which had been ramping-up during the first half of 2011, along with continued strong performance from our other existing operations. This has allowed us to generate increased revenues of US$3,160.8 million, despite a decrease in average copper market prices. This increase in low-cost production from Esperanza has also allowed us to maintain a relatively stable cash cost position, within the context of an industry environment which remains tight. We have also continued to make good progress with our strong organic pipeline, predominantly within Chile, which has the potential to significantly increase the scale of the Group over the course of this decade. I am delighted to have taken on the role of Chief Executive Officer of Antofagasta Minerals S.A. from 1 August 2012. I am looking forward to helping the Group to realise the great potential from its current operations and strong pipeline of growth projects."