The euro-zone economy improved much faster than expected in thesecond quarter of the year. Growth is estimated to have been around the 1% level, the fastest quarterly level for three years; and this has eased the fears about a move into a “double-dip” recession, at least for the moment. But it is a two-speed recovery, with the German economy estimated to have grown by 2.2% during the quarter, the Netherlands economy by 0.9%, and the French economy by 0.6%, but with Spain and Portugal basically unchanged and the Greek economy falling further into recession. With domestic demand weak, it is therefore essential that overseas demand remains buoyant if German exports are going to continue to drive the overall economy forward; but this is now very uncertain, and so growth projections for the rest of this year and for 2011 are still fairly cautious.
However the European Central Bank is maintaining its optimistic view of prospects. Speaking before the latest figures were announced, the chairman, Jean Claude Trichet, argued that the second quarter outturn would be better than expected, that there would also be an encouraging result in the third quarter, and that there was no prospect of a move into a “double-dip” recession.
He also defended the bank’s actions during the recession, suggested that the economy has responded well to those actions, and was anxious to ensure that “perhaps part of the credit could come to the central bank”.
There is an obvious risk that his comments will prove to be premature. Since the latest downgrade in Ireland’s credit rating has provided further evidence that the problems in the European banking system are far from resolved, and that the threat of sovereign debt defaults remains. It is not surprising therefore that markets have been unable to resist the downwards pressure despite the relatively good corporate results from European companies.
The UK market has also fallen sharply over the past month. The UK economy is currently performing better than expected, with consumer spending holding up well so far; and the markets are continuing to give the latest measures by the new UK government to reduce the fiscal deficit the benefit of the doubt. But there are fears that those austerity measures with have a significant effect on growth in the second half of the year, and into 2011, and that corporate activity will be badly affected. The mood amongst investors has therefore become much more cautious.
The latest news on the UK economy has been encouraging. The Office of National Statistics has recently estimated that retail sales volumes were 1.1% higher in July than in the previous month, and 1.3% higher than in July last year, the strongest monthly gain since February; unemployment remains much lower than might have been expected; the latest Purchasing Manager’s index for July confirms that manufacturing activity is continuing to expand; and exports also appear to strong.
There are weaknesses in the housing sector, and apparently some loss of momentum in the services sector, and bank lending remains low; but overall there are hopes that growth in the current quarter will be at reasonable levels. But there are already indications that the austerity measures announced by the government are beginning to have an effect on activity, and so the situation remains very uncertain.
This uncertainty is reflected in the minutes of the latest meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England. They state that the economy is “on a knife-edge”, with “substantial risks” of a relapse balanced against signs of “gathering momentum” in the recovery. This uncertainty persuaded the majority of the members of the committee that policy should remain unchanged for the present; but the minutes indicated that “the risks were substantial, and that members stood ready to respond in either direction as the balance of risks evolved”. The subsequent Inflation Report from the bank was also a cautious document, with growth forecasts revised lower, primarily because of the expected effects of the austerity measures, and with the governor of the bank, Mervyn King, stressing the need for “continuing monetary stimulus” in the face of the “choppy recovery”. Interest rates are therefore likely to remain low for some considerable time, despite the fact that the inflation rate is well above the bank’s target rate, and so monetary policy will continue to be supportive. But will this be enough to justify the present market level? Global growing is slowing, and this will add to the downward pressures on the economy resulting from the austerity measures as they are introduced. The odds therefore seem to favour further UK market weakness in the near-term, even though we believe that the economic recovery will continue, and eventually lead to higher equity prices.
The Japanese market has also moved lower over the past month. Recent figures have shown that economic growth in Japan slowed very sharply in the second quarter of the year because of weak domestic demand and falling exports; and as a result China has replaced Japan as the world’s second largest economy for the first time. Growth is estimated to have been at a 0.4% annualised rate in the second quarter, after a 4.4% rate in the first three months of the year, and this has increased the fears that the country may once again be slipping back into recession. The dependence on exports has been an important adverse factor, as overseas markets have weakened, and this has encouraged speculation that the Bank of Japan will be forced to intervene in the currency markets to prevent further appreciation of the yen; but even this might not be enough to avoid a recession. In this situation, it is particularly unfortunate that an impasse exists at the political level that is making it extremely difficult for the government to take effective action. The background situation therefore remains very disappointing, and the weakness in the equity market looks set to continue.
Fisher Capital Management Korea is a leading global financial institution holding extensive relationships with financial institutions, institutional investors and corporations across the world. As a full service company Fisher Capital Management Korea provides a full range of investment banking services including advanced risk management, corporate strategy and structure, plus raising capital through debt and equity markets. With this as our backbone we continue to provide a client service second to none.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Major Equity Markets 2010: Fisher Capital Management Part 1
Sentiment in the equity markets has been steady over the past month. Markets in Europe have been unable to resist downward pressure. The Japanese market is also lower; but there has been resistance amongst the emerging markets in South East Asia that are supported by more favourable economic conditions.
The Chinese authorities are obviously determined to prevent their economy from overheating. The global recovery will therefore only proceed at a very slow pace, and there may well be setbacks along the way, although a move into a “double-dip” recession still seems unlikely. There is also an increased danger of a sovereign debt default by Greece, and possibly even by Ireland. But the swing in sentiment should not go too far. So long as monetary policy remains supportive, the global economic recovery is likely to continue, and this will eventually produce a sustainable improvement in equity prices. Patience will therefore be the most important requirement amongst investors until some of the uncertainties have been resolved.
The Fed is in a very difficult position. The statement after its latest OMC meeting was cautious about economic prospects, conceding that “the pace of recovery in output and in employment has slowed in recent months” and was likely to be “more modest” than anticipated in the near-term. But monetary policy was left basically unchanged at the meeting, perhaps because of the “unusual uncertainty” about prospects, and this caused some disappointment. However there is little doubt that further monetary easing will be introduced if the position continues to deteriorate, because the bank’s main priority is to try to maintain some momentum in the economy. And fiscal policy is also likely to remain supportive, despite the massive size of the existing deficit. Congress has been reluctant to authorise additional spending programmes; but there is intense political pressure ahead of the elections in November, and further programmes seem likely.
The critical question for investors therefore is whether the continued monetary and fiscal support will be enough. They have been prepared to adopt a bullish attitude to the situation, and this mood has been helped by an encouraging flow of corporate earnings results that have often exceeded expectations, and confirmed that the corporate sector has been coping well so far with a difficult situation.
The gloom should not be overdone. So long as monetary policy remains supportive, we believe that the odds favour the continuation of the slow recovery, and that this will eventually produce better market conditions.
Mainland European markets have fallen back sharply over the past month, after the strong rally. There has been evidence of a further improvement in the economic background in the euro-zone, and second quarter corporate results have generally been encouraging; but the signs of weakness in the US economy and the slowdown in China has raised doubts about whether the German export performance that has been providing most of the momentum for the recovery can be maintained; and there have also been renewed concerns about the possibility of debt defaults amongst the weaker member countries of the zone. The markets have therefore been unable to resist downward pressure.
The euro-zone economy improved much faster than expected in the second quarter of the year. Growth is estimated to have been around the 1% level, the fastest quarterly level for three years; and this has eased the fears about a move into a “double-dip” recession, at least for the moment. But it is a two-speed recovery, with the German economy estimated to have grown by 2.2% during the quarter, the Netherlands economy by 0.9%, and the French economy by 0.6%, but with Spain and Portugal basically unchanged and the Greek economy falling further into recession. With domestic demand weak, it is therefore essential that overseas demand remains buoyant if German exports are going to continue to drive the overall economy forward; but this is now very uncertain, and so growth projections for the rest of this year and for 2011 are still fairly cautious.
However the European Central Bank is maintaining its optimistic view of prospects. Speaking before the latest figures were announced, the chairman, Jean Claude Trichet, argued that the second quarter outturn would be better than expected, that there would also be an encouraging result in the third quarter, and that there was no prospect of a move into a “double-dip” recession.
Fisher Capital Management Korea is a leading global financial institution holding extensive relationships with financial institutions, institutional investors and corporations across the world. As a full service company Fisher Capital Management Korea provides a full range of investment banking services including advanced risk management, corporate strategy and structure, plus raising capital through debt and equity markets. With this as our backbone we continue to provide a client service second to none.
The Chinese authorities are obviously determined to prevent their economy from overheating. The global recovery will therefore only proceed at a very slow pace, and there may well be setbacks along the way, although a move into a “double-dip” recession still seems unlikely. There is also an increased danger of a sovereign debt default by Greece, and possibly even by Ireland. But the swing in sentiment should not go too far. So long as monetary policy remains supportive, the global economic recovery is likely to continue, and this will eventually produce a sustainable improvement in equity prices. Patience will therefore be the most important requirement amongst investors until some of the uncertainties have been resolved.
The Fed is in a very difficult position. The statement after its latest OMC meeting was cautious about economic prospects, conceding that “the pace of recovery in output and in employment has slowed in recent months” and was likely to be “more modest” than anticipated in the near-term. But monetary policy was left basically unchanged at the meeting, perhaps because of the “unusual uncertainty” about prospects, and this caused some disappointment. However there is little doubt that further monetary easing will be introduced if the position continues to deteriorate, because the bank’s main priority is to try to maintain some momentum in the economy. And fiscal policy is also likely to remain supportive, despite the massive size of the existing deficit. Congress has been reluctant to authorise additional spending programmes; but there is intense political pressure ahead of the elections in November, and further programmes seem likely.
The critical question for investors therefore is whether the continued monetary and fiscal support will be enough. They have been prepared to adopt a bullish attitude to the situation, and this mood has been helped by an encouraging flow of corporate earnings results that have often exceeded expectations, and confirmed that the corporate sector has been coping well so far with a difficult situation.
The gloom should not be overdone. So long as monetary policy remains supportive, we believe that the odds favour the continuation of the slow recovery, and that this will eventually produce better market conditions.
Mainland European markets have fallen back sharply over the past month, after the strong rally. There has been evidence of a further improvement in the economic background in the euro-zone, and second quarter corporate results have generally been encouraging; but the signs of weakness in the US economy and the slowdown in China has raised doubts about whether the German export performance that has been providing most of the momentum for the recovery can be maintained; and there have also been renewed concerns about the possibility of debt defaults amongst the weaker member countries of the zone. The markets have therefore been unable to resist downward pressure.
The euro-zone economy improved much faster than expected in the second quarter of the year. Growth is estimated to have been around the 1% level, the fastest quarterly level for three years; and this has eased the fears about a move into a “double-dip” recession, at least for the moment. But it is a two-speed recovery, with the German economy estimated to have grown by 2.2% during the quarter, the Netherlands economy by 0.9%, and the French economy by 0.6%, but with Spain and Portugal basically unchanged and the Greek economy falling further into recession. With domestic demand weak, it is therefore essential that overseas demand remains buoyant if German exports are going to continue to drive the overall economy forward; but this is now very uncertain, and so growth projections for the rest of this year and for 2011 are still fairly cautious.
However the European Central Bank is maintaining its optimistic view of prospects. Speaking before the latest figures were announced, the chairman, Jean Claude Trichet, argued that the second quarter outturn would be better than expected, that there would also be an encouraging result in the third quarter, and that there was no prospect of a move into a “double-dip” recession.
Fisher Capital Management Korea is a leading global financial institution holding extensive relationships with financial institutions, institutional investors and corporations across the world. As a full service company Fisher Capital Management Korea provides a full range of investment banking services including advanced risk management, corporate strategy and structure, plus raising capital through debt and equity markets. With this as our backbone we continue to provide a client service second to none.
New Commercial Boilers Presented - Triad Boiler Room Systems by Fisher Capital
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: Triad Boiler Systems creates distinctively tough small-footprint hot water boilers, steam boilers, and radiant heating systems.
All of our boilers use 12 gauge firetubes in compact vessels that suit through very small doorways! Inputs range up to 2,000,000 BTU's. Create a highly efficient system with millions of BTU's by sequencing a string of these modular vessels.
TRIAD's commercial boilers and industrial grade Hot Water Heating, Domestic Hot Water, and Steam boilers are used in a wide variety of applications. Our commercial boilers are used at schools, universities, apartments, hospitals, office buildings, retirement communities, and churches. Industrial uses have included bakeries, smelting operations, food processing, quenching systems, and various heating applications for manufacturing. Triads’ modular boilers and radiant heating systems can be natural gas fired, oil fired, or dual fuel fired. For simplicity of operation and maintenance, all controls on our boilers are well known, off-the-shelf products. There area no proprietary parts on these boilers! This simplicity of operation is part of our philosophy, and an important reason why our customers return to us again and again.
TRIAD has been manufacturing high-quality boilers since 1926, and developed the modular boiler concept with primary/secondary piping, receiving a patent for it in 1967. We put this experience, knowledge, and expertise into every boiler.
We believe in quality - it is the overriding characteristic driving our company. This is why we manufacture extremely rugged, well-designed hot water and steam boilers that can provide decades of dependable service. We welcome your inquiries.
Benefits of Modularity
TRIAD's elegantly simple design maintains consistent water volume where heat is required.
• Boilers are activated sequentially, drawing water from the main loop into the next hot water boiler until the heating need is meet.
• firing boilers remaining isolated, so no heated water circulates through cold boilers.
• During most of the year the unfired boilers provide additional backup.
• Outdoor temperatures and loop water temperatures are constantly monitored.
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: The efficiency of this design is most apparent during warmer months, when a conventional hydronic heating or steam boiler could still be operating at full capacity.
Primary-Secondary Piping - TRIAD integrates modularity with a single pipe primary-secondary system. TRIAD was the first company to employ a Primary-Secondary concept. It operates with two loops, (i) the primary loop, or building main loop, and (ii) smaller secondary loops off of each hot water boiler, which supply heated water to the primary loop.
Upon a call for heat, the boiler pump begins pushing the return water into the boiler and out through the secondary loop, supplying this hot water up into the primary loop (the main header), where it mixes with the cooler return water from the main loop of the building.
• Supply and return water are blended, avoiding the need for expensive and unreliable mixing valves commonly used in two pipe systems.
• The secondary loop isolates each hot water boiler, resulting in a very efficient system that minimizes thermal shock.
Control Panel
TRIAD Boilers can be sequenced by the use of our control panel that provides many attractive features:
• Temperature set-back when less heat is required, such as nights and weekends.
• Adjustments for latent heat, to take advantage of hot boiler water that retains heat after the burner shuts down.
• Outdoor reset based on atmospheric temperatures.
• Monitoring of return water temperatures to maintain accurate heating output.
It is also very easy to sequence our boilers using the panel of any other major manufacturer.
Packaged Product - Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: All TRIAD hot water boilers and steam boilers are fully assembled, packaged products, which offer several advantages over boilers that must be assembled at the jobsite
• Onsite labor costs are minimized.
• Quality control is higher at the factory than at the jobsite
• The ease of installation of a packaged boiler allows for quicker start up.
Benefits of Steel Boilers
Easy to Clean - To maintain boiler efficiency, heating surfaces must be kept clean and free of combustion by-products. All TRIAD heating surfaces, especially the firetubes, are easy to access. It is impossible to clean all the heating surfaces of a cast iron boiler, and what can be reached is difficult to clean.
TRIAD also makes it easy to maintain clean water surfaces. The cleaning of the interior of a cast iron boiler is a major undertaking, and even then only the vertical surfaces can be cleaned. The inability to clean the horizontal surfaces can have a significant impact on operating efficiency.
Easy to Repair - Because of their steel construction, TRIAD hot water and steam boilers can be repaired in the field with minimal disruption. A leak can be permanently welded or the tubes re-rolled with little difficulty. It is impossible to permanently weld a cracked cast iron boiler section or a leaking copper fin-tube boiler. The firetubes are easily accessed through the top and through the firedoor.
Fast Water Circulation - Poor circulation of water within the typical cast iron boiler is very common due to their design limits, while TRIAD's steel hot water boilers provide for faster circulation.
All of our boilers use 12 gauge firetubes in compact vessels that suit through very small doorways! Inputs range up to 2,000,000 BTU's. Create a highly efficient system with millions of BTU's by sequencing a string of these modular vessels.
TRIAD's commercial boilers and industrial grade Hot Water Heating, Domestic Hot Water, and Steam boilers are used in a wide variety of applications. Our commercial boilers are used at schools, universities, apartments, hospitals, office buildings, retirement communities, and churches. Industrial uses have included bakeries, smelting operations, food processing, quenching systems, and various heating applications for manufacturing. Triads’ modular boilers and radiant heating systems can be natural gas fired, oil fired, or dual fuel fired. For simplicity of operation and maintenance, all controls on our boilers are well known, off-the-shelf products. There area no proprietary parts on these boilers! This simplicity of operation is part of our philosophy, and an important reason why our customers return to us again and again.
TRIAD has been manufacturing high-quality boilers since 1926, and developed the modular boiler concept with primary/secondary piping, receiving a patent for it in 1967. We put this experience, knowledge, and expertise into every boiler.
We believe in quality - it is the overriding characteristic driving our company. This is why we manufacture extremely rugged, well-designed hot water and steam boilers that can provide decades of dependable service. We welcome your inquiries.
Benefits of Modularity
TRIAD's elegantly simple design maintains consistent water volume where heat is required.
• Boilers are activated sequentially, drawing water from the main loop into the next hot water boiler until the heating need is meet.
• firing boilers remaining isolated, so no heated water circulates through cold boilers.
• During most of the year the unfired boilers provide additional backup.
• Outdoor temperatures and loop water temperatures are constantly monitored.
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: The efficiency of this design is most apparent during warmer months, when a conventional hydronic heating or steam boiler could still be operating at full capacity.
Primary-Secondary Piping - TRIAD integrates modularity with a single pipe primary-secondary system. TRIAD was the first company to employ a Primary-Secondary concept. It operates with two loops, (i) the primary loop, or building main loop, and (ii) smaller secondary loops off of each hot water boiler, which supply heated water to the primary loop.
Upon a call for heat, the boiler pump begins pushing the return water into the boiler and out through the secondary loop, supplying this hot water up into the primary loop (the main header), where it mixes with the cooler return water from the main loop of the building.
• Supply and return water are blended, avoiding the need for expensive and unreliable mixing valves commonly used in two pipe systems.
• The secondary loop isolates each hot water boiler, resulting in a very efficient system that minimizes thermal shock.
Control Panel
TRIAD Boilers can be sequenced by the use of our control panel that provides many attractive features:
• Temperature set-back when less heat is required, such as nights and weekends.
• Adjustments for latent heat, to take advantage of hot boiler water that retains heat after the burner shuts down.
• Outdoor reset based on atmospheric temperatures.
• Monitoring of return water temperatures to maintain accurate heating output.
It is also very easy to sequence our boilers using the panel of any other major manufacturer.
Packaged Product - Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: All TRIAD hot water boilers and steam boilers are fully assembled, packaged products, which offer several advantages over boilers that must be assembled at the jobsite
• Onsite labor costs are minimized.
• Quality control is higher at the factory than at the jobsite
• The ease of installation of a packaged boiler allows for quicker start up.
Benefits of Steel Boilers
Easy to Clean - To maintain boiler efficiency, heating surfaces must be kept clean and free of combustion by-products. All TRIAD heating surfaces, especially the firetubes, are easy to access. It is impossible to clean all the heating surfaces of a cast iron boiler, and what can be reached is difficult to clean.
TRIAD also makes it easy to maintain clean water surfaces. The cleaning of the interior of a cast iron boiler is a major undertaking, and even then only the vertical surfaces can be cleaned. The inability to clean the horizontal surfaces can have a significant impact on operating efficiency.
Easy to Repair - Because of their steel construction, TRIAD hot water and steam boilers can be repaired in the field with minimal disruption. A leak can be permanently welded or the tubes re-rolled with little difficulty. It is impossible to permanently weld a cracked cast iron boiler section or a leaking copper fin-tube boiler. The firetubes are easily accessed through the top and through the firedoor.
Fast Water Circulation - Poor circulation of water within the typical cast iron boiler is very common due to their design limits, while TRIAD's steel hot water boilers provide for faster circulation.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning
The share market has come down hard on Fisher & Paykel Appliances - with its shares falling 40 per cent after the company issued a profit warning today.
The whiteware manufacturer's shares, which were worth $2.94 this time last year and worth $1 on Friday, went into free fall and are currently trading at just 60 cents, a 40 cent fall.
Earlier today the company said it expected a net profit of $25 million to $30m, down up to 54 per cent on last year.
Due to the deterioration in the New Zealand dollar, Fisher & Paykel Appliances' total bank debt grew $122 from March last year to $512m at the end of January. It was predicted to be $570m by the end of March.
It is now looking at reviewing its capital structure and alternative sources of capital.
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning - The market was very concerned the company had to come back with a capital raising, which was unexpected, said Hamilton, Hindin, Greene director Grant Williamson.
The home appliance market had dropped off in all areas Fisher & Paykel exported to and there did not appear to be too many signs of a turnaround in world housing at the moment, he said.
"I think investors are starting to say; how long is it going to be before conditions change for the company? I think that's the biggest concern."
Williamson said Fisher & Paykel Appliances' wares were sold into most new homes but when very few new homes being built it would have a serious effect on their sales.
A 40 per cent drop in share value was a big hit for the share price to take but that was the general state of the market.
"If any company disappoints the market then the market is very harsh on their share price and we have certainly seen that this morning with Fisher & Paykel Appliances."
The company announced it would not proceed with a capital note issue and was looking an alternative source of capital.
The directors were considering the merits of issuing equity, including to a cornerstone investor.
Williamson said he did not believe a capital notes raising would have been particularly well received.
He did not see any short term bounce in the price until there was clarification around the structure of equity raising. That was expected to be announced in early March.
"At the moment there's still a fair degree of selling in the market place, around the 60c level."- NZPA
The whiteware manufacturer's shares, which were worth $2.94 this time last year and worth $1 on Friday, went into free fall and are currently trading at just 60 cents, a 40 cent fall.
Earlier today the company said it expected a net profit of $25 million to $30m, down up to 54 per cent on last year.
Due to the deterioration in the New Zealand dollar, Fisher & Paykel Appliances' total bank debt grew $122 from March last year to $512m at the end of January. It was predicted to be $570m by the end of March.
It is now looking at reviewing its capital structure and alternative sources of capital.
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning - The market was very concerned the company had to come back with a capital raising, which was unexpected, said Hamilton, Hindin, Greene director Grant Williamson.
The home appliance market had dropped off in all areas Fisher & Paykel exported to and there did not appear to be too many signs of a turnaround in world housing at the moment, he said.
"I think investors are starting to say; how long is it going to be before conditions change for the company? I think that's the biggest concern."
Williamson said Fisher & Paykel Appliances' wares were sold into most new homes but when very few new homes being built it would have a serious effect on their sales.
A 40 per cent drop in share value was a big hit for the share price to take but that was the general state of the market.
"If any company disappoints the market then the market is very harsh on their share price and we have certainly seen that this morning with Fisher & Paykel Appliances."
The company announced it would not proceed with a capital note issue and was looking an alternative source of capital.
The directors were considering the merits of issuing equity, including to a cornerstone investor.
Williamson said he did not believe a capital notes raising would have been particularly well received.
He did not see any short term bounce in the price until there was clarification around the structure of equity raising. That was expected to be announced in early March.
"At the moment there's still a fair degree of selling in the market place, around the 60c level."- NZPA
Fisher Capital Management Report Part 2 - The UK Emergency Budget
Fisher Capital Management Report Part 2- The UK has had an emergency budget and it could have been much
worse. The heavy lifting is being done by a rise in VAT bringing in
£13 billion. On the spending side the cuts are achieved by freezing
public sector pay, indexing state benefits to the CPI rather than the
faster-rising RPI and freezing child benefits. State pensions will be
indexed to the higher of wages or the CPI but the pension age will
be raised to 66 fairly soon.
Interest rates are projected to remain low, with inflation absent;
and it is possible that Quantitative Easing will need to be resumed
but on present prospects this seems unlikely to be necessary.
Another concern is with the regulative proposals. There is an antibank
mentality developing in this coalition government, which is
most unfortunate; much of it seems to emanate from Vince Cable
and the Lib Dems.
Yet a moment’s thought should be enough to convince one that we
need bank credit expansion and a return to competition on the
bank high street in order to foster recovery and enterprise. Ever
tougher bank regulation is what was needed before, at the peak of
expansion, not now in the slough of recession giving way to recovery.
Talk of breaking up banks fails to recognise the natural economics
of banks, which favours scale and risk-spreading. Talk of capping
mortgage lending at modest percentages of income is also unfortunate
when the UK want to see a revival of it’s housing market, now once
again back in the doldrums.
A last area of concern is the state of the labour market. The UK do
have near ‘full employment’ if one discounts the modest temporary
effect of recession. But this only applies to those normally looking
for work.
Fisher Capital Management Report Part 2 - The UK Emergency Budget: There is now a large group of people who are claiming benefits of
various sorts in order to stay out of the labour market. Disability
benefit is one route; another is the having of children in order to
get child benefits and related parenting allowances, with tragic
consequences for some children.
Tightening up of this has been signalled in the budget but this has
happened before, with no proper follow-through.
Another UK labour market problem is the resurgence of union
power as Labour loosened the union laws passed before 1997. One
key loosening was the 12-week rule, which allows workers to breach
their contracts with impunity when on strike until 12 weeks of
strike have occurred. When strikes are designed for short periods
for maximum disruption, this 12 week period can take a long time
to trigger. During it the employing firm is unable to defend itself
by recruiting a different labour force.
Under the pre-1997 legislation firms were able to dismiss workers
in breach of contract, provided they did so in a non-discriminatory
way. This led to a huge reduction in strikes and a large rise in UK
productivity, to the great general benefit.
As we have seen in recent years, certain unions are exploiting this
12-week rule to damage the economy — the classic case has been
the BA dispute where UNITE has persisted in attempting to defend
well-above market wages for cabin crew.
In sum the budget was a decent start in restoring fiscal sanity. But
only a start.
The UK now needs urgent attention to the creation of a proper tax
system with low marginal rates but generating a reliable revenue
source — the two are perfectly compatible. It needs sense and
restraint in regulation. Finally they need to reform their labour
market yet again.
worse. The heavy lifting is being done by a rise in VAT bringing in
£13 billion. On the spending side the cuts are achieved by freezing
public sector pay, indexing state benefits to the CPI rather than the
faster-rising RPI and freezing child benefits. State pensions will be
indexed to the higher of wages or the CPI but the pension age will
be raised to 66 fairly soon.
Interest rates are projected to remain low, with inflation absent;
and it is possible that Quantitative Easing will need to be resumed
but on present prospects this seems unlikely to be necessary.
Another concern is with the regulative proposals. There is an antibank
mentality developing in this coalition government, which is
most unfortunate; much of it seems to emanate from Vince Cable
and the Lib Dems.
Yet a moment’s thought should be enough to convince one that we
need bank credit expansion and a return to competition on the
bank high street in order to foster recovery and enterprise. Ever
tougher bank regulation is what was needed before, at the peak of
expansion, not now in the slough of recession giving way to recovery.
Talk of breaking up banks fails to recognise the natural economics
of banks, which favours scale and risk-spreading. Talk of capping
mortgage lending at modest percentages of income is also unfortunate
when the UK want to see a revival of it’s housing market, now once
again back in the doldrums.
A last area of concern is the state of the labour market. The UK do
have near ‘full employment’ if one discounts the modest temporary
effect of recession. But this only applies to those normally looking
for work.
Fisher Capital Management Report Part 2 - The UK Emergency Budget: There is now a large group of people who are claiming benefits of
various sorts in order to stay out of the labour market. Disability
benefit is one route; another is the having of children in order to
get child benefits and related parenting allowances, with tragic
consequences for some children.
Tightening up of this has been signalled in the budget but this has
happened before, with no proper follow-through.
Another UK labour market problem is the resurgence of union
power as Labour loosened the union laws passed before 1997. One
key loosening was the 12-week rule, which allows workers to breach
their contracts with impunity when on strike until 12 weeks of
strike have occurred. When strikes are designed for short periods
for maximum disruption, this 12 week period can take a long time
to trigger. During it the employing firm is unable to defend itself
by recruiting a different labour force.
Under the pre-1997 legislation firms were able to dismiss workers
in breach of contract, provided they did so in a non-discriminatory
way. This led to a huge reduction in strikes and a large rise in UK
productivity, to the great general benefit.
As we have seen in recent years, certain unions are exploiting this
12-week rule to damage the economy — the classic case has been
the BA dispute where UNITE has persisted in attempting to defend
well-above market wages for cabin crew.
In sum the budget was a decent start in restoring fiscal sanity. But
only a start.
The UK now needs urgent attention to the creation of a proper tax
system with low marginal rates but generating a reliable revenue
source — the two are perfectly compatible. It needs sense and
restraint in regulation. Finally they need to reform their labour
market yet again.
GOLD Business Advertising Associate Unilux State-of-the-art Production: The Boiler Room
Unilux is the country’s first 5 pass forced draft bent tube boiler with absolutely no room for inaccuracy. With more than thirty many years of producing and functional expertise in almost every business requiring boilers, Unilux holds solely as being the most excellent, remarkably designed, best high quality boiler in it’s course. While the product speaks volumes, our success is our people; many with over 25 years at Unilux, we take substantial pride in every unit we manufacture. From immediate response to inquiries, performance data, drawings, product description and assistance with proper selection, everyone at Unilux has one important goal in mind…customer satisfaction. Unilux QA/QC boasts a stringent, internal program that emphasizes employee responsibility to safety, product and quality performance.
Richard Fisher from the Boiler Room: Unilux Innovative Development - Building for all Unilux boilers starts with the vessel. All vessel material is controlled, ASME compliant material. Generous upper and lower drums are joined with large, external downcomer(s) allowing for maximum internal circulation. Tubes are a minimum 1.5” diameter, SA 178 Grade “A” material. Tube sizes up to 2.5” diameter are used for larger boilers. The Unilux housing is the most rigid available. Individual steel panels are manufactured with 11 gauge steel and reinforced by bending and welded stiffeners throughout. Refractory design is exclusive to Unilux. We utilize a three tier pour of different tolerance refractory for ultimate performance. All Unilux refractory is warranted for 5 years as standard. Finished insulated jacket panels are scratch resistant, polyester impregnated powder coat. Thermal losses from housing and jacket are 0.5 percent. The completed enclosure allows for up to +5” water column gas side pressure. All Unilux boilers are available with fuel burning equipment and control systems as desired.
Safety is extremely important at Unilux. Every Unilux boiler continues to be engineered to become the most secure, most effective merchandise obtainable in its class.
At Unilux Boiler Corp., we engineer and manufacture bent water tube boilers of only the finest quality, built by experienced craftsmen and backed by a service history that is second to none. When others decline custom engineered projects, Unilux embraces the challenge with experienced, thought provoking ideas and the ability to assist engineers, contractors and end users with the most efficient, long lasting solutions to effectively meet their needs.
Richard Fisher from the Boiler Room: Unilux Innovative Development - Building for all Unilux boilers starts with the vessel. All vessel material is controlled, ASME compliant material. Generous upper and lower drums are joined with large, external downcomer(s) allowing for maximum internal circulation. Tubes are a minimum 1.5” diameter, SA 178 Grade “A” material. Tube sizes up to 2.5” diameter are used for larger boilers. The Unilux housing is the most rigid available. Individual steel panels are manufactured with 11 gauge steel and reinforced by bending and welded stiffeners throughout. Refractory design is exclusive to Unilux. We utilize a three tier pour of different tolerance refractory for ultimate performance. All Unilux refractory is warranted for 5 years as standard. Finished insulated jacket panels are scratch resistant, polyester impregnated powder coat. Thermal losses from housing and jacket are 0.5 percent. The completed enclosure allows for up to +5” water column gas side pressure. All Unilux boilers are available with fuel burning equipment and control systems as desired.
Safety is extremely important at Unilux. Every Unilux boiler continues to be engineered to become the most secure, most effective merchandise obtainable in its class.
At Unilux Boiler Corp., we engineer and manufacture bent water tube boilers of only the finest quality, built by experienced craftsmen and backed by a service history that is second to none. When others decline custom engineered projects, Unilux embraces the challenge with experienced, thought provoking ideas and the ability to assist engineers, contractors and end users with the most efficient, long lasting solutions to effectively meet their needs.
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: The American way?
http://www.investmentnews.com/
By Jessica Toonkel
April 11, 2011
In a recent interview, American Funds Distributor’s president Kevin Clifford reportedly blamed the recent fund outflows at American on pollyanna-ish sales pitches at the retail level. Not surprisingly, those working at the retail level — namely, advisers — did not take kindly to the suggestion.
http://www.investmentnews.com/article/20110411/BLOG03/110419995
Did American Funds’ exec diss advisers?
Clifford reportedly pinned fund firm’s recent outflows on pollyanna-ish sales pitches
By Jessica Toonkel
April 11, 2011 2:59 pm ET
American Funds appears to have bitten the hand that feeds it.
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In a rare interview with Barron’s published last weekend, Kevin Clifford, president of American Funds Distributors Inc., is quoted as blaming advisers for the huge outflows the firm has seen since the most recent market meltdown.
In the article, Mr. Clifford is quoted as saying that advisers were characterizing American’s funds as “able to defy gravity,” based on their strong returns after the dot-com crash. He described the hawking as “foolish.”
American Funds suffered $50 billion in outflows in 2010 and so far this year has seen another $14.79 billion go out the door, according to Morningstar Inc. (See a recent list of the ‘The 5 fund families with the largest outflows’.)
Industry observers advisers said they were surprised to see American Funds point the finger at them for the outflows at the giant fund firm.
“The comments were just jaw dropping,” said Don Phillips, director of research at Morningstar Inc. “To lay blame on the people who sell their funds is astonishing, and you have to think, rather foolish.”
Advisers were equally unimpressed by the comments.
“Advisers were overselling the funds because they were over-marketing them,” said Steve Johnson, an adviser with Raymond James Financial Services Inc., who uses American Funds selectively. “Their wholesalers were out there beating you up on how cheap their funds were and how consistent the track records were.”
American Funds needs to take some responsibility for setting expectations, said Kevin McDevitt, an analyst at Morningstar. “You have to wonder what the wholesalers were telling advisers,” he said.
Some advisers were shocked to see an American Funds executive point the finger at advisers so directly, even if what he was saying was accurate. “I think it’s hysterical that he is questioning advisers,” said Rich Zito, an adviser with Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC. “It’s like, ‘Let me beat up on my customers.’”
American Funds contends that Mr. Clifford’s comments were taken out of context. “Kevin Clifford absolutely did not blame advisers,” said Chuck Freadhoff, a spokesman. “I am not saying that the reporter misquoted him, but there was a miscommunication.”
Mr. Freadhoff said that the number of advisers selling American Funds doubled from 100,000 to 200,000 between 1999 and 2006. Many of American Funds’ offerings did well during the dot-com bust, he said, and thus many new advisers invested with the firm, believing that the funds would be able to maintain that level of outperformance.
“Many advisers believed we would hold up much better in a downturn, but in 2008, many of our funds didn’t do that,” he said.
American Funds has reached out to its wholesalers and adviser-facing employees about the miscommunication so that they can address any questions or concerns from advisers stemming from the Barron’s article.
“We have provided them with the full context of what Kevin said and prepared them to answer any questions,” Mr. Freadhoff said. “Our entire business model is built around the value of advice.”
But Mr. Phillips believes the remarks are emblematic of Capital Research & Management’s culture. “They are not experienced with talking to the press and they need to be,” he said. “They are a massive manager of money.”
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: For investment banks in Q1, underwriting was it
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/12/us-investmentbank-idUSTRE73B3EB20110412
By Lauren Tara LaCapra
NEW YORK | Tue Apr 12, 2011 9:59am EDT
(Reuters) – U.S. stock underwriting was the sole strong business in an otherwise bleak first quarter for U.S. investment banks.
Both Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) and Morgan Stanley (MS.N) are expected to report lower first-quarter earnings next week compared with the same quarter a year ago.
Revenue from trading, merger advisory and bond underwriting is expected to be weak as markets were choppy, relatively few mergers closed, and debt issuance declined relative to exceptionally strong levels a year ago.
Unfortunately for investment banks, stock underwriting is too small a business to make up for weakness in all these other areas.
Longer term, banks face other pressures, too. Trading profit could be crimped in the future as more markets move to exchanges and clearinghouses. And new rules will limit banks’ ability to make bets with their own funds.
“The greatest strategic challenge facing Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley,” says Bernstein analyst Brad Hintz, “is the uncertainty of new regulations.”
But in the first quarter, banks did well with stock underwriting, thanks in part to massive initial public offerings from private equity firms looking to cash out of companies they bought before the financial crisis.
In the first three months of the year, companies issued $196.3 billion of stock globally, the best first quarter for equity issuance on record, according to Thomson Reuters data. Issuance volume rose 15 percent from a year earlier, and fees for underwriting increased 12 percent to $6.1 billion.
That helps banks, but only so much — the stock underwriting business delivered just 7 percent of overall revenue for Goldman Sachs last year, and Goldman was the biggest underwriter. The business was even less substantial for Morgan Stanley, whose equity underwriting revenue comprised just 4.6 percent of its total revenue for 2010.
OTHER BUSINESSES SUFFERING
Stock underwriting could end up being a material part of earnings in the first quarter just because so many other businesses were relatively weak. Goldman raked in an estimated $491 million of fees from stock underwriting, Thomson Reuters data show, up 41 percent from a year earlier.
Analysts on average expect Goldman to report first-quarter net income of $459.5 million, or 81 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Even without a charge of $2.80 per share to buy back Goldman preferred stock from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, that’s well below earnings of $5.59 per share in the year-ago period. Goldman is slated to report results on Tuesday, April 19.
Morgan Stanley, scheduled to post results on Thursday, April 21, will see a boost from its role as lead underwriter for the conversion of $59 billion worth of American International Group Inc (AIG.N) preferred stock into common shares.
Results for both investment banks could be even worse than analysts expect. Sell-side researchers with the best track records are forecasting results for Morgan Stanley that are 22 percent below analysts’ average estimate, and 0.2 percent below for Goldman Sachs, according to Thomson Reuters Starmine Smart Estimates.
A key factor for Morgan Stanley will be how well its Morgan Stanley Smith Barney joint venture with Citigroup Inc (C.N) performed during the quarter. Morgan Stanley Chief Executive James Gorman has staked the future of the bank on that wealth management business in a way that none of his rivals have.
Morgan Stanley’s global wealth management division delivered $1.2 billion in pre-tax income last year, more than double the amount in 2009, and some investors are hopeful the business will continue to be a stable source of revenue.
JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) garnered the most fees of any investment bank in the first quarter thanks to its advisory role in several key deals and its dominance in the high-yield debt market.
JPMorgan collected $1.4 billion in investment banking fees, or 6.2 percent of the industry total. It reported impressive results as other banks struggled to dodge unexpected interest rate moves.
JPMorgan is scheduled to report quarterly results on Wednesday, April 13.
(Reporting by Lauren Tara LaCapra; editing by John Wallace)
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: Alliance Trust defends investment strategy
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-13057133
12 April 2011 Last updated at 16:33 ET
Money
The group’s profits before tax, including capital, were down from £473m to £456m
A Dundee-based investment trust has issued a defence of its strategy with its annual results.
Alliance Trust reported its return to shareholders stood at 19% for the year to January 31,compared with more than 20% in the previous year.
It also highlighted the share price reached a three-year high in January, with net asset value increasing by 11.9% in the second half of last year.
The company is striving to see off a challenge from an activist investor.
Chairwoman Lesley Knox said the asset management business saw a sharp increase in third party funds under its management, up from £12m to £83m by the end of the year, and up to £100m since then.
The group’s profits before tax, including capital, were down from £473m to £456m.
These are some of the figures being used in the battle with hedge fund Laxey Partners, which owns an eighth of Alliance Trust equity, and which wants to force a buy-back of shares as a means of raising the share price.
Continue reading the main story
“Start Quote
We are focused on managing the trust in the best interests of these long-term shareholders – not those who are motivated purely to make a short-term gain”
Lesley KnoxChairwoman, Alliance Trust
It is pressing other shareholders to back its campaign to overturn the management strategy at the company’s annual general meeting on 20 May.
It argues the share price has been trading at nearly 20% below net asset value of Alliance Trust funds, and it wants that brought below a 10% discount.
Alliance Trust’s chairwoman said the company’s performance was in the median range for its corporate peer group.
“Through regular engagement with our shareholders, we believe that we have a good understanding of their long-term investment priorities,” she said.
“We are focused on managing the trust in the best interests of these long-term shareholders – not those who are motivated purely to make a short-term gain.”
Chief executive Katherine Garrett-Cox said there was already a share buyback under way, with nearly £9.6m put into supporting the Tayside company’s share price.
Near-term prospects for stock markets remain “clouded” by uncertainties, including rising commodity prices and consumers’ debt burden, she added.
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: Novices, take Trio Capital Funds as a warning
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/novices-take-trio-capital-funds-as-a-warning/story-e6frg8zx-1226039900616
# Glenda Korporaal
# From:The Australian
# April 16, 2011 12:00AM
THIS week’s $55 million bailout of the Trio Capital funds — which did not apply to investors in self-managed superannuation funds — is not an argument against having a self-managed superannuation fund.
But it is an argument that those who do not have the interest or the skills to take an active interest in the management of their money would be better off opting for their employer’s default fund, an industry superannuation fund or a major reputable fund.
Those considering taking their money out of an established super fund and putting it in a self-managed superannuation fund — who are being convinced to do so by a “friendly” financial adviser offering to take on the hassle of handling paperwork and annual tax returns — should think again.
Having a self-managed superannuation fund can offer a considerable degree of flexibility and control for those who know what they are doing.
Related Coverage
* Super is not as safe as you think Herald Sun, 1 day ago
* Claims loom on Trio fundThe Australian, 1 day ago
* DIY funds to put case for compo The Australian, 2 days ago
* DIY super funds entitled to Trio compo The Australian, 2 days ago
* Warning for self-managed super funds The Australian, 2 days ago
But those who don’t know what they are doing, and take the self-managed super option, are highly vulnerable to the skills and integrity and the judgment of their financial adviser in a way which would not occur if they opted for a no-fuss conventional option.
This week’s bailout was a timely reminder that the levy system that benefits investors in APRA-regulated funds does not apply to self-managed super funds. “Trustees of self-managed superannuation funds have to be aware that there isn’t any form of compensation for which things go wrong, except for remedial action through the courts,” Sharyn Long, the chairwoman of the Self Managed Super Fund Professionals Association (SPAA), said yesterday.
“If a financial adviser is involved they can take action, but there is limited remedy for them in cases where fraud occurs.”
The bailout is based on the fact that APRA-regulated funds will be levied to cover the cost of the fraud involved. The system does not apply to self-managed super funds. The logic is that why should the trustees of some 400,000 small funds, often operated for only two or three beneficiaries, have to pay up for the investment mistakes of a handful of other small funds (in this case 285 SMSFs) who would have quite happily reaped the upside if the funds had delivered the superior performance?
There may be some change to that situation but this is what is prevailing at the moment.
The collapse of Trio does reinforce the need for all investors to do their homework on the type of funds they invest their money in, particularly funds offering higher than normal returns or which may have unknown international links. “The basic principle is that the higher the return, the higher the risk,” says Long. “One of the main tools to mitigate that risk is diversification.”
No investor should put all, or the bulk, of their investments into one fund or one associated group of funds. And the more exposed one is to a fund, the more need for detailed homework.
It is also a general warning that anyone who uses a financial adviser should not regard this as a reason to suspend all judgment — no matter how competent they appear or how much they offer to take over the burden of financial life.
There is no excuse for not asking questions about where and how the money is being invested.
In the case of Trio, the situation was made worse by the fact that there was a wrap situation where fund managers handed over their clients’ funds, with those funds invested in Trio-related funds such as Astarra.
In the case of wraps, it is vital that the investor has complete confidence in the operator of the wraps — and only after doing some basic homework.
If the fund itself or the wrap provider is not well known, the investor should ask what is it and who are its principals.
The Trio funds were based out of Albury, which is not exactly the funds management capital of the world. Warren Buffett, of course, is based in Omaha, which is not the fund management capital of the world either. But he and his Berkshire Hathaway organisation are well known and have a track record of integrity.
With the ready availability of search engines such as Google, investors can easily do simple online searches from the comfort of home.
The searches should be done on the funds and the principals of those involved to see if there is any “form”, or any questionable activities.
The fact that the fund is offering investment in exotic products using offshore tax havens should also be a red flag for investors to do some extra homework.
In the end there will always be fraud — which is the reason that the default option for anyone with little financial knowledge should be to go with the plain, vanilla-type of investments with plain, vanilla-type managers.
John Hempton of Bronte Capital, who raised the alarm on the Trio funds, also raises other issues of concern about the lack of regulation of broker-dealers and how they are still allowed unrestricted pledging of client assets.
This is another area which needs some government attention. But in the meantime the Trio collapse should be a wake-up call for investors that there is no excuse not to be aware of exactly how their funds are invested and who is handling their money. When it comes to handing over your money to anyone, all questions are good questions.
There are no dumb questions.
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: Trusteer: User education can’t protect against social engineering
http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/201115/7066/Trusteer-User-education-can-t-protect-against-social-engineering
by Steve Ragan – Apr 15 2011, 03:40
An experiment by security firm Trusteer has shown that even the most educated user can be fooled by a Phishing attack. By using 100 well-informed participants on social/business portal LinkedIn, Trusteer sent out messages similar to the ones site users would see on a regular basis. Interestingly, almost 70 percent of the test group fell for the con.
Phishing attacks and other scams are constantly explained and cautioned against, and most security professionals can explain what to look for and how to avoid falling victim to these cons. Yet, there is always a victim. No matter how good the education, you can’t reach everyone… and, more worringly, some will simply ignore the advice.
Trusteer, in wanting to test the notion that education isn’t the total solution for avoiding Phishing and other scams (as well as looking to show how easy it is to fall victim) asked 100 people to take part in its experiment. All of them agreed. However, while they knew they would be part of a security test, none of them knew when the test would take place.
Trusteer created a new identity on the LinkedIn site and then used some basic data-mining techniques on the supposedly educated participants, its goal being to collect information on their connections along with any other personal information presented via the site.
Mickey Boodaei, Trusteer’s CEO explains: “We picked a population of 100 users – these are people we know – friends and family and estimated to be fairly educated about security…”
“Since LinkedIn sends an alert when one of your connections has a new job, we decided to use this update method to create a fraudulent email. For each one of our targets we crafted a fictitious new job alert,” he added. “We chose one of their LinkedIn connections, and announced that this person was now working for a company that directly competes with our victim’s company.”
The message came with a large linked button with which to view the friend’s new title, just as LinkedIn does on its regular communications. Included in the email was a photo of the friend alongside their name, again much as it appears on the proper site. By choosing to click the button, users were taken, not to LinkedIn, but to a dummy attack site.
“The website we used was innocuous, but it was a place holder for a potentially malicious website that places malware on the victim’s computer. We released this email to all 100 subjects on the same day – a Tuesday morning – and monitored who clicked the link and reached our landing page,” Boodaei said.
Within the first 24 hours, 41 participants had fallen for the scam. Within seven days, 68 people had clicked the button. If this had been a real attack, those numbers would have marked a high return on a criminal’s investment. In all, Trusteer spent about 17 hours on the study.
As for the other 32 people, Boodaei explained that, when approached: “Sixteen said they haven’t seen this email (it probably went into their spam folder). Seven said they usually don’t read LinkedIn updates. Nine said that the update was not interesting enough for them to click the link.”
The one thing we disagree with is the company’s statement issued at the end of the test, which says that the “solution to this problem must be based on technology and probably using more than one method.”
Technology, while helpful, will not prevent the problem of people falling prey to Phishing scams. Perhaps a better recommendation would have been to blend technology with basic education and awareness. Phishing scams work because they are able to bypass technology and take advantage of human nature.
As mentioned in the Trusteer write-up, the tools that organizations use to train their customers on Phishing scams are “not effective enough” to reach all of them, or convey the message in a way the majority will understand. Mixing education and technology might help, but technology alone will do no better than that which exists today.
The test performed by Trusteer is an interesting one. It would be nice to see a similar test where the participants are told it is a Phishing attack beforehand. Likewise, it would be interesting to see the test done to scale, where several hundred if not thousands of participants are targeted.
It’s frustrating to see people fall for basic Phishing scams, and it’s painful when major companies like RSA are victimized by them. However, there is no single answer when it comes to protecting against or preventing tricks against the human mind. The person who finally solves that riddle will be able to demand any ransom they want for the answer.
Fisher Capital Management Investment Solutions: Number of victims hacked by News of the World may be ‘substantially higher’
Sienna Miller, who has been named as a hacking victim. Photo: PA
By Mark Hughes, Crime Correspondent 9:15PM BST 15 Apr 2011Follow Mark Hughes on Twitter
Previously Scotland Yard had said that information found in records kept by Mulcaire who was employed by the newspaper, showed that he had 91 voicemail PINs – suggesting 91 potential victims.
But the High Court has heard that the new police investigation expects to find many more victims. And that could open the door for more celebrities to take legal action against the News of the World.
The disclosure came as it emerged that the actress Sienna Miller may have had her emails hacked into. Ms Miller has been offered £100,000 to halt her case against the News of the World. She is yet to accept or reject the offer.
But while the News of the World waits to hear whether Ms Miller will settle, they could now have to defend themselves against scores of other claims.
The High Court heard that 40 detectives working on the new investigation – codenamed Operation Weeting – are currently trawling through 9,200 pages of records seized from Mr Mulcaire.
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Specifically they are looking for direct dial numbers (DDN) – the number dialed by a mobile phone user to access voicemails.
Jason Beer QC, acting for the Metropolitan Police, told the High court: “There are, within the Mulcaire archive, records of DDNs where, on the face of it, there is no good reason for these to appear. That is strongly indicative of interception.”
Asked about whether the number of numbers is larger than the 91 PINs, Mr Beer added: “The number of DDNs is substantially higher than that.”
The New of the World issued a public apology over phone hacking last Friday, offering to pay damages to anyone who could prove that their phone was hacked by one of its journalists.
Mr Beer said that since then a host of people have been in touch with the Metropolitan Police attempting to discover whether they were a victim of phone hacking.
“Since the admissions last Friday, the Metropolitan Police has been flooded with enquiries. The number of people beating a path to the Met’s door has increased very substantially.”
The court hearing also heard that the News of the World had offered to settle the case with Sienna Miller, one of the celebrities who is suing the newspaper over fears that her voicemails were intercepted.
The court heard that the actress has been offered £100,000 plus her legal costs to settle the case. She has neither accepted nor rejected the offer.
There was also a suggestion that Ms Miller may also have had her emails hacked into as recent as 2008.
The documents seized from Mr Mulcaire had Ms Miller’s email password and her legal team claim that a journalist could have known this in 2008, despite the fact that by then the Mulcaire documents were in the hands of the police.
Hugh Tomlinson QC, her barrister, explained: “The hacking in 2008 is separate from the phone records. We have linked that to the Mulcaire archive because she used the same password on her mobile phone and on her email and that was recorded on Mr Mulcaire’s notes. We infer that that password was used to hack her email.”
The civil cases against the News of the World are being brought by 20 people, including Jude Law, Paul Gascoigne, George Galloway, Tessa Jowell and the jockey Kieren[CORR] Fallon.
But yesterday the judge Mr Justice Vos ruled that there should be four test cases which will determine how much damages should be paid to future claimants. The tests cases, the court heard, are likely to be those of the football pundit Andy Gray, football agent Sky Andrew, Sienna Miller and Kelly Hoppen, the interior designer.
Glenn Mulcaire and the News of the World’s royal correspondent Clive Goodman were jailed in 2007 after they admitted hacking into voicemails. But the Metropolitan Police was criticised for ending their investigation when, it was alleged, the practice of hacking at the paper went further.
In January this year a new investigation was launched. So far three News of the World employees have been arrested. Chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck, former news editor Ian Edmondson and assistant James Weatherup have all been bailed to return in September.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning
The share market has come down hard on Fisher & Paykel Appliances - with its shares falling 40 per cent after the company issued a profit warning today.
The whiteware manufacturer's shares, which were worth $2.94 this time last year and worth $1 on Friday, went into free fall and are currently trading at just 60 cents, a 40 cent fall.
Earlier today the company said it expected a net profit of $25 million to $30m, down up to 54 per cent on last year.
Due to the deterioration in the New Zealand dollar, Fisher & Paykel Appliances' total bank debt grew $122 from March last year to $512m at the end of January. It was predicted to be $570m by the end of March.
It is now looking at reviewing its capital structure and alternative sources of capital.
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning - The market was very concerned the company had to come back with a capital raising, which was unexpected, said Hamilton, Hindin, Greene director Grant Williamson.
The home appliance market had dropped off in all areas Fisher & Paykel exported to and there did not appear to be too many signs of a turnaround in world housing at the moment, he said.
"I think investors are starting to say; how long is it going to be before conditions change for the company? I think that's the biggest concern."
Williamson said Fisher & Paykel Appliances' wares were sold into most new homes but when very few new homes being built it would have a serious effect on their sales.
A 40 per cent drop in share value was a big hit for the share price to take but that was the general state of the market.
"If any company disappoints the market then the market is very harsh on their share price and we have certainly seen that this morning with Fisher & Paykel Appliances."
The company announced it would not proceed with a capital note issue and was looking an alternative source of capital.
The directors were considering the merits of issuing equity, including to a cornerstone investor.
Williamson said he did not believe a capital notes raising would have been particularly well received.
He did not see any short term bounce in the price until there was clarification around the structure of equity raising. That was expected to be announced in early March.
"At the moment there's still a fair degree of selling in the market place, around the 60c level."- NZPA
The whiteware manufacturer's shares, which were worth $2.94 this time last year and worth $1 on Friday, went into free fall and are currently trading at just 60 cents, a 40 cent fall.
Earlier today the company said it expected a net profit of $25 million to $30m, down up to 54 per cent on last year.
Due to the deterioration in the New Zealand dollar, Fisher & Paykel Appliances' total bank debt grew $122 from March last year to $512m at the end of January. It was predicted to be $570m by the end of March.
It is now looking at reviewing its capital structure and alternative sources of capital.
Fisher Capital Equipment Update - Market slams Fisher and Paykel on profit Warning - The market was very concerned the company had to come back with a capital raising, which was unexpected, said Hamilton, Hindin, Greene director Grant Williamson.
The home appliance market had dropped off in all areas Fisher & Paykel exported to and there did not appear to be too many signs of a turnaround in world housing at the moment, he said.
"I think investors are starting to say; how long is it going to be before conditions change for the company? I think that's the biggest concern."
Williamson said Fisher & Paykel Appliances' wares were sold into most new homes but when very few new homes being built it would have a serious effect on their sales.
A 40 per cent drop in share value was a big hit for the share price to take but that was the general state of the market.
"If any company disappoints the market then the market is very harsh on their share price and we have certainly seen that this morning with Fisher & Paykel Appliances."
The company announced it would not proceed with a capital note issue and was looking an alternative source of capital.
The directors were considering the merits of issuing equity, including to a cornerstone investor.
Williamson said he did not believe a capital notes raising would have been particularly well received.
He did not see any short term bounce in the price until there was clarification around the structure of equity raising. That was expected to be announced in early March.
"At the moment there's still a fair degree of selling in the market place, around the 60c level."- NZPA
New Commercial Boilers Presented - Triad Boiler Room Systems by Fisher Capital
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: Triad Boiler Systems creates distinctively tough small-footprint hot water boilers, steam boilers, and radiant heating systems.
All of our boilers use 12 gauge firetubes in compact vessels that suit through very small doorways! Inputs range up to 2,000,000 BTU's. Create a highly efficient system with millions of BTU's by sequencing a string of these modular vessels.
TRIAD's commercial boilers and industrial grade Hot Water Heating, Domestic Hot Water, and Steam boilers are used in a wide variety of applications. Our commercial boilers are used at schools, universities, apartments, hospitals, office buildings, retirement communities, and churches. Industrial uses have included bakeries, smelting operations, food processing, quenching systems, and various heating applications for manufacturing. Triads’ modular boilers and radiant heating systems can be natural gas fired, oil fired, or dual fuel fired. For simplicity of operation and maintenance, all controls on our boilers are well known, off-the-shelf products. There area no proprietary parts on these boilers! This simplicity of operation is part of our philosophy, and an important reason why our customers return to us again and again.
TRIAD has been manufacturing high-quality boilers since 1926, and developed the modular boiler concept with primary/secondary piping, receiving a patent for it in 1967. We put this experience, knowledge, and expertise into every boiler.
We believe in quality - it is the overriding characteristic driving our company. This is why we manufacture extremely rugged, well-designed hot water and steam boilers that can provide decades of dependable service. We welcome your inquiries.
Benefits of Modularity
TRIAD's elegantly simple design maintains consistent water volume where heat is required.
• Boilers are activated sequentially, drawing water from the main loop into the next hot water boiler until the heating need is meet.
• firing boilers remaining isolated, so no heated water circulates through cold boilers.
• During most of the year the unfired boilers provide additional backup.
• Outdoor temperatures and loop water temperatures are constantly monitored.
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: The efficiency of this design is most apparent during warmer months, when a conventional hydronic heating or steam boiler could still be operating at full capacity.
Primary-Secondary Piping - TRIAD integrates modularity with a single pipe primary-secondary system. TRIAD was the first company to employ a Primary-Secondary concept. It operates with two loops, (i) the primary loop, or building main loop, and (ii) smaller secondary loops off of each hot water boiler, which supply heated water to the primary loop.
Upon a call for heat, the boiler pump begins pushing the return water into the boiler and out through the secondary loop, supplying this hot water up into the primary loop (the main header), where it mixes with the cooler return water from the main loop of the building.
• Supply and return water are blended, avoiding the need for expensive and unreliable mixing valves commonly used in two pipe systems.
• The secondary loop isolates each hot water boiler, resulting in a very efficient system that minimizes thermal shock.
Control Panel
TRIAD Boilers can be sequenced by the use of our control panel that provides many attractive features:
• Temperature set-back when less heat is required, such as nights and weekends.
• Adjustments for latent heat, to take advantage of hot boiler water that retains heat after the burner shuts down.
• Outdoor reset based on atmospheric temperatures.
• Monitoring of return water temperatures to maintain accurate heating output.
It is also very easy to sequence our boilers using the panel of any other major manufacturer.
Packaged Product - Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: All TRIAD hot water boilers and steam boilers are fully assembled, packaged products, which offer several advantages over boilers that must be assembled at the jobsite
• Onsite labor costs are minimized.
• Quality control is higher at the factory than at the jobsite
• The ease of installation of a packaged boiler allows for quicker start up.
Benefits of Steel Boilers
Easy to Clean - To maintain boiler efficiency, heating surfaces must be kept clean and free of combustion by-products. All TRIAD heating surfaces, especially the firetubes, are easy to access. It is impossible to clean all the heating surfaces of a cast iron boiler, and what can be reached is difficult to clean.
TRIAD also makes it easy to maintain clean water surfaces. The cleaning of the interior of a cast iron boiler is a major undertaking, and even then only the vertical surfaces can be cleaned. The inability to clean the horizontal surfaces can have a significant impact on operating efficiency.
Easy to Repair - Because of their steel construction, TRIAD hot water and steam boilers can be repaired in the field with minimal disruption. A leak can be permanently welded or the tubes re-rolled with little difficulty. It is impossible to permanently weld a cracked cast iron boiler section or a leaking copper fin-tube boiler. The firetubes are easily accessed through the top and through the firedoor.
Fast Water Circulation - Poor circulation of water within the typical cast iron boiler is very common due to their design limits, while TRIAD's steel hot water boilers provide for faster circulation.
All of our boilers use 12 gauge firetubes in compact vessels that suit through very small doorways! Inputs range up to 2,000,000 BTU's. Create a highly efficient system with millions of BTU's by sequencing a string of these modular vessels.
TRIAD's commercial boilers and industrial grade Hot Water Heating, Domestic Hot Water, and Steam boilers are used in a wide variety of applications. Our commercial boilers are used at schools, universities, apartments, hospitals, office buildings, retirement communities, and churches. Industrial uses have included bakeries, smelting operations, food processing, quenching systems, and various heating applications for manufacturing. Triads’ modular boilers and radiant heating systems can be natural gas fired, oil fired, or dual fuel fired. For simplicity of operation and maintenance, all controls on our boilers are well known, off-the-shelf products. There area no proprietary parts on these boilers! This simplicity of operation is part of our philosophy, and an important reason why our customers return to us again and again.
TRIAD has been manufacturing high-quality boilers since 1926, and developed the modular boiler concept with primary/secondary piping, receiving a patent for it in 1967. We put this experience, knowledge, and expertise into every boiler.
We believe in quality - it is the overriding characteristic driving our company. This is why we manufacture extremely rugged, well-designed hot water and steam boilers that can provide decades of dependable service. We welcome your inquiries.
Benefits of Modularity
TRIAD's elegantly simple design maintains consistent water volume where heat is required.
• Boilers are activated sequentially, drawing water from the main loop into the next hot water boiler until the heating need is meet.
• firing boilers remaining isolated, so no heated water circulates through cold boilers.
• During most of the year the unfired boilers provide additional backup.
• Outdoor temperatures and loop water temperatures are constantly monitored.
Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: The efficiency of this design is most apparent during warmer months, when a conventional hydronic heating or steam boiler could still be operating at full capacity.
Primary-Secondary Piping - TRIAD integrates modularity with a single pipe primary-secondary system. TRIAD was the first company to employ a Primary-Secondary concept. It operates with two loops, (i) the primary loop, or building main loop, and (ii) smaller secondary loops off of each hot water boiler, which supply heated water to the primary loop.
Upon a call for heat, the boiler pump begins pushing the return water into the boiler and out through the secondary loop, supplying this hot water up into the primary loop (the main header), where it mixes with the cooler return water from the main loop of the building.
• Supply and return water are blended, avoiding the need for expensive and unreliable mixing valves commonly used in two pipe systems.
• The secondary loop isolates each hot water boiler, resulting in a very efficient system that minimizes thermal shock.
Control Panel
TRIAD Boilers can be sequenced by the use of our control panel that provides many attractive features:
• Temperature set-back when less heat is required, such as nights and weekends.
• Adjustments for latent heat, to take advantage of hot boiler water that retains heat after the burner shuts down.
• Outdoor reset based on atmospheric temperatures.
• Monitoring of return water temperatures to maintain accurate heating output.
It is also very easy to sequence our boilers using the panel of any other major manufacturer.
Packaged Product - Fisher Capital on Boiler Room Equipment, Inc: All TRIAD hot water boilers and steam boilers are fully assembled, packaged products, which offer several advantages over boilers that must be assembled at the jobsite
• Onsite labor costs are minimized.
• Quality control is higher at the factory than at the jobsite
• The ease of installation of a packaged boiler allows for quicker start up.
Benefits of Steel Boilers
Easy to Clean - To maintain boiler efficiency, heating surfaces must be kept clean and free of combustion by-products. All TRIAD heating surfaces, especially the firetubes, are easy to access. It is impossible to clean all the heating surfaces of a cast iron boiler, and what can be reached is difficult to clean.
TRIAD also makes it easy to maintain clean water surfaces. The cleaning of the interior of a cast iron boiler is a major undertaking, and even then only the vertical surfaces can be cleaned. The inability to clean the horizontal surfaces can have a significant impact on operating efficiency.
Easy to Repair - Because of their steel construction, TRIAD hot water and steam boilers can be repaired in the field with minimal disruption. A leak can be permanently welded or the tubes re-rolled with little difficulty. It is impossible to permanently weld a cracked cast iron boiler section or a leaking copper fin-tube boiler. The firetubes are easily accessed through the top and through the firedoor.
Fast Water Circulation - Poor circulation of water within the typical cast iron boiler is very common due to their design limits, while TRIAD's steel hot water boilers provide for faster circulation.
Fisher Capital Management News: Commodity Markets 2010
The performance of the commodity markets remains very impressive. Speculative activity is a major factor, and supply shortages, often the result of adverse weather conditions, are also providing considerable support; but there is clearly a view amongst both traders and investors that the general level of prices is too low, and that they will move higher. Over the longer-term that view is likely to prove to be justified. Commodity markets have been extremely volatile over the past month, rising strongly in the early part of the period, but falling back sharply towards month-end concerns about the effects of the austerity measures being introduced in Europe, and indications of a continuing slowdown in China, have combined to increase fears but for most of the past month traders and investors apparently decided that the gloom was overdone; and commodity prices also benefited from some “safe haven” buying by investment funds.
Base metal prices are still ending the month higher overall, but below recent levels, with the further sharp rise in the tin price as the outstanding feature; and food prices have also moved higher, with the continuing surge in wheat prices as the outstanding feature of these markets, to provide further support for the view that the era of cheap food is coming to an end. The gold price has also improved, as investors have sought “safe havens in the present storm”; but oil prices have fallen back.
Base metal prices are closing higher again over the past month. Zinc and tin prices still ended sharply higher, but overall improvements elsewhere were fairly modest.
Chinese demand remains a critical factor in these markets. It is this demand that has been the main driving force over recent months, and that has pushed iron ore prices to record levels and enabled other metal prices to recover from the lows of the recent recession.
Soft commodity markets have provided a mixed performance over the past month, but prices are generally higher. The exceptions have been the cocoa price, which has continued to fall as weather conditions in the Ivory Coast have improved, crop estimates have been pushed higher, and the effects of the technical squeeze created by the decision by Armajaro, the London-based hedge fund, to take delivery of around 7% of the world’s annual cocoa bean production last month, have eased; and soya-bean prices are also basically unchanged over the month. But elsewhere there has been a sharp rise in Arabica coffee prices, and a further improvement in the sugar price.
However the main interest over the month has been in the wheat market, after the massive price gains, and also in other grain markets. The most significant events during the month were the decision by the Russian authorities to ban the export of wheat and other grains until year-end because of the drought that has devastated crops and caused widespread fires across the country; and to ask other neighbouring countries to take similar action.
It is not yet clear how they will respond; but the action has already created widespread concern.
Russia was the world’s third largest wheat exporter last year, sending 18.3 million tons abroad, and so the decision to ban exports for the rest of the year has had a dramatic effect on prices. Attempts have been made to limit the price gains, with the US Department of Agriculture in particular indicating that US stockpiles of wheat are close to 30 million tons and at a 23 year high, and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation insisting that global stocks are more than adequate to cope with the shortfall, even if other neighbouring countries join the Russian ban.
But these countries were expected to supply around one quarter of total global wheat exports this year, and so the panic conditions in the markets have not been significantly eased. Evidence of significant purchases of US grain by China for the first time in a decade have also added to the concerns about the availability of global supplies, and made it even more difficult to assess the full consequences of the Russian decision; but it seems unlikely that the surge in the prices of wheat and other grains in over.
After rising sharply in late-July and early-August, oil prices have subsequently fallen back towards the $70 per barrel level. There have been warnings from the International Energy Agency that “the short- term global economic outlook is highly uncertain, presenting significant downside risks to future oil demand growth”; there has been a cautious view of future oil demand from OPEC; and also a report from the US Department of Energy that US stockpiles of crude oil and refined products have risen to their highest levels since weekly records began in 1990. Much will depend on future demand in the US and in China; but the fundamentals do not seem to point to an early and sustained improvement in prices unless there is a serious deterioration in political conditions in the Middle East.
The swing in sentiment towards a more cautious view of global economic prospects, and the renewed concerns about sovereign debt defaults in Europe, have provided further encouragement for investors to seek “safe havens” in the present uncertain situation, and this has led to a significant rally in the gold price over the past month.
The dollar has recovered well from weakness earlier in the month, and so the fear of dollar weakness has not been a factor pushing the gold price higher this month. The evidence that the sovereign debt crisis is far from being resolved, and the indications of increased Chinese buying of gold, have all helped to push the price higher. The latest strength may well lead to a further period of profit-taking; but given the present international situation, it would be unwise to assume that the improving trend in precious metal prices is over.
Fisher Capital Management Korea is a leading global financial institution holding extensive relationships with financial institutions, institutional investors and corporations across the world. As a full service company Fisher Capital Management Korea provides a full range of investment banking services including advanced risk management, corporate strategy and structure, plus raising capital through debt and equity markets. With this as our backbone we continue to provide a client service second to none.
Base metal prices are still ending the month higher overall, but below recent levels, with the further sharp rise in the tin price as the outstanding feature; and food prices have also moved higher, with the continuing surge in wheat prices as the outstanding feature of these markets, to provide further support for the view that the era of cheap food is coming to an end. The gold price has also improved, as investors have sought “safe havens in the present storm”; but oil prices have fallen back.
Base metal prices are closing higher again over the past month. Zinc and tin prices still ended sharply higher, but overall improvements elsewhere were fairly modest.
Chinese demand remains a critical factor in these markets. It is this demand that has been the main driving force over recent months, and that has pushed iron ore prices to record levels and enabled other metal prices to recover from the lows of the recent recession.
Soft commodity markets have provided a mixed performance over the past month, but prices are generally higher. The exceptions have been the cocoa price, which has continued to fall as weather conditions in the Ivory Coast have improved, crop estimates have been pushed higher, and the effects of the technical squeeze created by the decision by Armajaro, the London-based hedge fund, to take delivery of around 7% of the world’s annual cocoa bean production last month, have eased; and soya-bean prices are also basically unchanged over the month. But elsewhere there has been a sharp rise in Arabica coffee prices, and a further improvement in the sugar price.
However the main interest over the month has been in the wheat market, after the massive price gains, and also in other grain markets. The most significant events during the month were the decision by the Russian authorities to ban the export of wheat and other grains until year-end because of the drought that has devastated crops and caused widespread fires across the country; and to ask other neighbouring countries to take similar action.
It is not yet clear how they will respond; but the action has already created widespread concern.
Russia was the world’s third largest wheat exporter last year, sending 18.3 million tons abroad, and so the decision to ban exports for the rest of the year has had a dramatic effect on prices. Attempts have been made to limit the price gains, with the US Department of Agriculture in particular indicating that US stockpiles of wheat are close to 30 million tons and at a 23 year high, and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation insisting that global stocks are more than adequate to cope with the shortfall, even if other neighbouring countries join the Russian ban.
But these countries were expected to supply around one quarter of total global wheat exports this year, and so the panic conditions in the markets have not been significantly eased. Evidence of significant purchases of US grain by China for the first time in a decade have also added to the concerns about the availability of global supplies, and made it even more difficult to assess the full consequences of the Russian decision; but it seems unlikely that the surge in the prices of wheat and other grains in over.
After rising sharply in late-July and early-August, oil prices have subsequently fallen back towards the $70 per barrel level. There have been warnings from the International Energy Agency that “the short- term global economic outlook is highly uncertain, presenting significant downside risks to future oil demand growth”; there has been a cautious view of future oil demand from OPEC; and also a report from the US Department of Energy that US stockpiles of crude oil and refined products have risen to their highest levels since weekly records began in 1990. Much will depend on future demand in the US and in China; but the fundamentals do not seem to point to an early and sustained improvement in prices unless there is a serious deterioration in political conditions in the Middle East.
The swing in sentiment towards a more cautious view of global economic prospects, and the renewed concerns about sovereign debt defaults in Europe, have provided further encouragement for investors to seek “safe havens” in the present uncertain situation, and this has led to a significant rally in the gold price over the past month.
The dollar has recovered well from weakness earlier in the month, and so the fear of dollar weakness has not been a factor pushing the gold price higher this month. The evidence that the sovereign debt crisis is far from being resolved, and the indications of increased Chinese buying of gold, have all helped to push the price higher. The latest strength may well lead to a further period of profit-taking; but given the present international situation, it would be unwise to assume that the improving trend in precious metal prices is over.
Fisher Capital Management Korea is a leading global financial institution holding extensive relationships with financial institutions, institutional investors and corporations across the world. As a full service company Fisher Capital Management Korea provides a full range of investment banking services including advanced risk management, corporate strategy and structure, plus raising capital through debt and equity markets. With this as our backbone we continue to provide a client service second to none.
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