Member Info for MY21

Pub companies: managing decline: The U.K.’s famous pubs are not worth much these days — as pubs, anyway. So they are being converted into shops, flats, restaurants, veterinary practices and the odd synagogue at the rate of about 27 a week. Against this sober backdrop, and with net debt that is more than three times its market capitalisation, pub Owner Enterprise Inns is working out how to improve profitability. There is room for improvement at Enterprise. Compare Mitchells & Butlers, the leading operator of managed pubs. On average, each of its boozers, which tend to be large and serve lots of food, makes much more profit than Enterprise’s, and sales are growing a bit faster, too — 1.7% in the first half against 0.6%. So far so good. Execution is the risk: does Enterprise have the management heft to go from 16 directly run pubs to more than 800? It is also uncertain how quickly tenants will switch off the tie, forsaking the subsidised rent that goes with it. This amounts to swapping a variable cost (overpriced beer) for a fixed one (market rate rent). Some tenants may not want that risk. But this is a plan, at least, and a bolder one than many expected. After a lengthy period of no dividends and a flat share price, it deserves support.

Restaurant sector turnover up 39% since 2010: Consumers continued to dine out through the economic downturn with turnover in the restaurant sector up 39% since 2010, a sign of the resilience of the industry

Tax spurs sale of £1 million homes: The highest number of sales in Scotland of houses worth more than £1 million was recorded in the month before a new sales tax came into force, according to a report.

Freedom Tower has fastest lifts in the West: One World Trade Center, sometimes known as the Freedom Tower, will open to the public who will be able to access its observatory with unrivalled views over Manhattan and beyond.

Stampede for home sales after Tory win: The brakes have come off the property market, according to leading estate agents, who are detecting a rush of people putting homes up for sale in light of the outcome of the election.

UK CB leading economic index advanced in April On a monthly basis, the CB leading economic index in the UK rose 0.20% in April. In the previous month, the CB leading economic index had registered a rise of 0.60%.

UK Rightmove house price index dropped in May The Rightmove house price index in the UK registered a drop of 0.10% on a MoM basis, in May. The Rightmove house price index had risen 1.60% in the previous month.

UK construction output rose more than expected in March In March, on an annual basis, construction output registered a rise of 1.60% in the UK, more than market expectations for an advance of 1.10%. In the previous month, construction output had recorded a revised drop of 0.20%.

At 0330GMT today, Brent crude oil one month futures contract is trading 0.13% or $0.09 higher at $66.90 per barrel. On Friday, the contract climbed 0.33% or $0.22, to settle at $66.81 per barrel, as a decline in the number of active US oil rigs as of May 15 and a weak dollar pushed the prices higher. However, persisting concerns of an oil supply glut kept the gains in check.

Boost for investors as M&S profits rise at last: Long-suffering shareholders may get up to £250 million in cash: Marks & Spencer chief executive Marc Bolland will this week mark his fifth anniversary at the chain with a rise in profits and hopes for a £250 million cash return to shareholders

Shell no': Hundreds take to boats in Seattle to protest Arctic drilling: Hundreds of activists decked out in neoprene wetsuits and life jackets took to the waters of Elliott Bay on Saturday. In kayaks, canoes, paddleboards and other vessels, they sent the message that Royal Dutch Shell should cancel its plan to drill in the Arctic Ocean.

Merlin has magic start: Merlin Entertainments the Owner of Madame Tussauds and Legoland Parks, said last week that it was having a steady start to the year as good weather across Europe helped the early holiday season. Revenue in the 18 weeks to May 2 increased by 7.2%, helped by the strength of the U.S dollar. Nick Varney, chief executive, said that there had been a good reaction to a number of new rides, such as the ‘Oblivion’ drop-coaster launched in Gardaland, Italy, in March, but that the weaker Euro might hit visitor numbers to the U.K this year. Expectations for the full-year results are unchanged, with the market forecasting pretax profits of £274 million, giving 20p in earnings per share. Merlin Entertainments at 462.9p. Questor says HOLD.

Oil price plunge boosts Petrobras: Petrobras, the oil producer engulfed in Brazil’s biggest corruption scandal, has delivered rare good news for investors after plunging global oil prices slashed the company’s import costs.

Church to splash out on clergy as booming investments pass £6.7 billion: The Church of England’s investment portfolio is to spend £100 million on a huge expansion of the clergy as booming property values pushed it to over £6.7 billion.

M&S woos City with pledge to return cash: MARKS & SPENCER is set to woo investors with bigger payouts — further easing pressure on Boss Marc Bolland after improvements in profitability and clothing sales.

Foreign bidders vie for Aveva: A pack of European and American conglomerates are plotting bids for Aveva, the £1billion British engineering software developer.

Housebuilding recovery may give GDP figures a lift: Construction output rose by 3.9% in March after being stuck in negative territory for the previous two months, the Office for National Statistics said.

Oil prices ended higher last week, after OPEC raised its outlook for world oil demand by 1.18 million barrels per day to 92.5 million and after the EIA projected total oil production from seven major shale plays to decline by 86,000 barrels per day in June. However, gains in the commodity were trimmed after the IEA suggested a persisting global battle for market share between OPEC and non-OPEC producers, fuelling concerns of an oil supply glut. Brent crude oil prices rose 1.0% to $66.81/barrel.

Since the recent fundraise; both Nigel Wray and other large shareholders are happy to increase their holdings via market purchasers which is not only providing a new level for the share price but it also demonstrates their total confidence in company's growth potential over the next 12-36 months and beyond. After all; just commercialising one technology by TEK Capital could be worth multiples of the current Market Cap. of circa £10m It will be interesting to see what the SP is by the end of this year.

Total household wealth at the end of 2014 is estimated to have reached £9.1trn, the latest research from Lloyds Bank Private Banking has revealed, an increase of £1.5 trillion (or 19%) in the past year and marking the largest annual increase since records began in 2001. This has been led by a combination of growth in average property prices and the value of financial assets - house prices rose by 9% during the year which meant housing wealth contributed an estimated £452bn to the overall increase in wealth (accounting for approximately one-third of the total rise), while the total value of financial assets held by households has increased by £996bn in the last year. Looking longer term, wealth held by households has grown by £3.9trn (or 75%) in the past decade, a significant increase from £5.2trn in 2004, equating to an increase of £126,572 per household. The value of household wealth has grown at a faster rate than the overall increase in consumer prices (RPI has risen by 31% over the past 10 years) and has significantly outpaced growth in gross household disposable income, which has risen by 42%. The report also noted that housing now accounts for 39% of total wealth, down from 45% in 2004, and conversely, the proportion accounted for by financial assets has risen from 55% to 61%. Overall, average household wealth increased to an estimated £326,414 in 2014.