Member Info for MY21

The strong consumer demand we are seeing for new build properties is supported by an improved mortgage market, with the range of mortgage products available to our customers increasing and borrowing rates remaining at very competitive levels. The Help to Buy (Equity Loan) scheme continues to be a very attractive opportunity for our customers and, in particular, is supporting first time buyers

Insurer Hiscox’s growth lifted by fewer disasters in first months of 2015: International specialist insurer Hiscox has reported a 12% quarterly increase in gross written premiums (GWP), boosted by currency movements and fewer disasters.

Office vacancies in south east at 14-year low: Vacancy rates across the south east office market are at their lowest since 2001, driving rental growth to record highs in towns across the region, Knight Frank reported .

Housing recovery lifts builders’ firm Grafton: Builders’ merchanting and DIY group Grafton posted upbeat results for the first four months of the year, as the continuing recovery in the economy and housing market helped boost demand for repair and improvement jobs.

Standard Life welcomes strong Scottish voice at Westminster: Standard Life’s Chairman Sir Gerry Grimstone has said the “strong voice” of the new bloc of Scottish MPs at Westminster will be good for Scotland providing it is also “reasonable”.

Pensions reforms fuel 40% business rise at Royal London: Royal London, the leading insurance mutual and a big employer in Scotland, is reaping the rewards of pension reforms with a 40% rise in new business.

Shell to resume Arctic drilling off Alaska as green groups warn of disaster: The U.S. government has given Shell approval to restart drilling in the Arctic despite repeated warnings from environmentalists that it could lead to an ecological disaster.

Opec revises up oil demand and cuts U.S. supply forecast: The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) has revised up its forecast for world oil demand this year on higher consumption in Europe’s biggest economies and cut its estimate for the growth in U.S. supply.

Pub philosophy: The Pub Landlord, aka comedian Al Murray, failed to win the seat of Thanet South in last week’s election when he ran satirically against Ukip’s Nigel Farage. In contrast, tenant landlords are winners from legislation that will free many of them from the obligation to buy pricey beer from pub companies that own their premises. That creates a problem for Enterprise Inns, which built an estate of more than 5,000 boozers through debt-fuelled acquisitions before the financial crisis. But the group, which announced a new strategy on Tuesday, will find it harder to recoup economies of scale on its own bulk purchasing of drink. The damage would depend on how many landlords choose to sever the beer tie after the new law is introduced next year. Enterprise said it expected up to 1,000 pubs to go rent-only by September 2020, sitting within a real estate investment trust it is setting up. Enterprise hopes to manage another 750-850 pubs directly. A sum on the back of a beer mat suggests the group might be left with about 2,400 traditional tenanted pubs in an estate of 4,200, having sold about 1,000. To succeed, Enterprise will have to build a great managed pubs business, virtually from a standing start, and offer tenants a winning franchise. The plan is sensible. But Enterprise remains burdened with net debts of £2.4 billion.

Enterprise to reshape pub business after loosening of beer tie: Enterprise Inns has become the first big pub group to announce a radical change to the shape of its business after a law was passed giving publicans the right to pay market prices for beer. It plans to sell 1000 pubs in the next 5 years.

Growth picks up as oil boosts industrial output: The economy picked up slightly in the three months to April, according to the latest projection from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (Niesr), lifting hopes that the slowdown in the first quarter was merely a blip.

Speedy Hire sees bonanza on horizon: The coming infrastructure and construction boom, and the need to hire diggers and other plant equipment, will be a bonanza for Speedy Hire, its Chief Executive claimed.

UK industrial production advanced more than expected in March Industrial production in the UK recorded a rise of 0.70% on an annual basis in March, compared to a rise of 0.10% in the prior month. Market anticipation was for industrial production to rise 0.10%. UK industrial production unexpectedly rose in March On a MoM basis, industrial production recorded an unexpected rise of 0.50% in March, in the UK, higher than market expectations for an unchanged reading. Industrial production had climbed 0.10% in the prior month

UK NIESR estimated GDP rose in the February-April 2015 period NIESR estimated gross domestic product (GDP) in the UK climbed 0.40% in the February-April 2015 period. In the November-January 2015 period, NIESR estimated GDP had advanced by a revised 0.30%.

UK manufacturing production rose more than expected in March On a MoM basis, in the UK, manufacturing production advanced 0.40% in March, higher than market expectations for an advance of 0.30%. In the previous month, manufacturing production had recorded a revised rise of 0.50%. UK manufacturing production rose more than expected in March On an annual basis, manufacturing production in the UK rose 1.10% in March, compared to a revised rise of 1.20% in the previous month. Markets were anticipating manufacturing production to rise 1.00%.

At 0330GMT today, Brent crude oil one month futures contract is trading 0.57% or $0.38 higher at $67.24 per barrel, ahead of the Energy Information Administration weekly oil inventory data, scheduled to be released later today. Yesterday, the contract climbed 3.0% or $1.95, to settle at $66.86 per barrel, supported by a weak US Dollar and after OPEC lifted its world oil demand outlook by 1.18 million barrels per day to 92.5 million. Additionally, the EIA projected total oil production from seven major shale plays to fall by 86,000 barrels a day in June, while the American Petroleum Institute reported that US oil stockpiles dropped 2 million last week.

Cairn briefs investors on exploration in Senegal: Oil explorer Cairn has lodged plans for a major drilling campaign off the coast of Senegal, which it believes could unlock more than a billion barrels

Shares surge in Eland after Nigeria boost: Shares in Eland Oil & Gas have leapt by more than nine% after it was handed a major boost to its drilling ambitions in West Africa

JLIF offers 5.4% inflation linked dividend: Shares in John Laing Infrastructure Fund remain a good option for income-hungry investors as they provide regular dividend payments from asset-backed investments. The company owns a portfolio of 56 investments, such as hospitals, social housing and schools, from which it earns a steady income. The value of those investments increased by 1.84% to £849.8 million during the three months to the end of March. That means the shares have a net asset value of about 110p per share, and are currently trading at about a 13% premium to their underlying value. JLIF isn’t exposed to the risks of building these large infrastructure projects as it is purely an investor that takes a stake once they are completed. These assets are attractive over the long term because revenues that are paid to JLIF are locked into a variety of multi-year contracts that are backed by the Government. So, a particular hospital could be loss-making, but the payments to the infrastructure fund that owns the assets are secure. The shares are currently offering a prospective dividend yield of 5.4%, which is increasingly attractive when bank savings accounts are offering much less. Questor thinks that with borrowing costs set to remain low for the foreseeable future, the steady returns from these assets will remain attractive. The shares also look reasonably priced, and we continue to believe they are an ideal home for long-term income seekers. John Laing Infrastructure Fund at 122.6p-0.3p Questor Says “Buy”.

Dignity profits rise on high death rate: Dignity, the funeral operator, put its profitable start to the year down to an unexpected jump in the number of people dying in the first quarter. Mr McCollum added that the first quarter of the year has historically seen big movements in the number of deaths. However, Dignity expects the number of deaths in 2015 to broadly in line with the 550,000 reported last year. However, Dignity’s costs fall when it buys a funeral parlour because all the products can be purchased in bulk, the computer systems and accounting are upgraded, and cheaper financing is obtained for large capital items such as hearses. Dignity’s steady revenue and strong cashflow means it is comfortable carrying a lot of debt. The company had net debts of £530 million at the end of 2014, following a major refinancing last year. The one-off costs associated with the refinancing led to the company reporting a statutory loss last year, but the underlying profitability of the business remains unaffected. The new borrowing has secured a more stable future for Dignity, with the debts now agreed for 35 years and at cheaper rates than before. Shares in Dignity have been on a strong run, rising by more than 35% in the past six months, and now trade on 21 times forecast earnings, falling to 20 times next year. The stock is certainly not cheap but given the consistent track record of profit growth and returns of cash to investors, they warrant a premium. Shares in Dignity remain an excellent long-term investment and we retain our recommendation. Dignity at £20.82-1p Questor Says “Hold”.