Business
Half Year Results to 30 June 2011
Half Year Results to 30 June 2011.
About this update from Coats Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 0796N Guinness Peat Group PLC 26 August 2011 \n \n\n \n \nGUINNESS PEAT GROUP plc\n \n \nChairman's Statement\n \n \nThe first half of 2011 saw the announcement and implementation of important initiatives at GPG. These flowed from the reorganisation of the Board during 2010 and the establishment of the independent sub-committee to evaluate strategic options. In particular during this period:\n \n\n\n\n\n· \n\n\nthe Board announced a strategy to realise value for shareholders by discontinuation of new investment and orderly realisation of the investment portfolio;\n \n\n\n\n\n· \n\n\ndisposals of investments during the period saw net cash generated from investment activity and realisations totalling £98 million. A schedule showing the proceeds from disposals in the period is set out at the end of this statement;\n \n\n\n\n\n· \n\n\ncapital realisations during the half year achieved an overall surplus to book value at 31 December 2010 values of £4 million; and\n \n\n\n\n\n· \n\n\nat the 2011 Annual General Meeting of the Company, together with a court-convened Scheme meeting, shareholders authorised a Scheme of Arrangement to implement a capital return for shareholders and to create distributable reserves.\n\n\n\n\n \nForeign Exchange Risk Management\n \nA critical aspect of maximising the value ultimately to be returned to shareholders is the need to protect the asset base from exposure to manageable risk. In the light of the announced strategy the Board has reviewed the policy for foreign exchange risk management. Excluding Coats, which the Board considers to be a long term hold, the Parent Group balance sheet is heavily weighted towards assets denominated in Australian dollars whilst capital note liabilities and future capital returns to the shareholder base are predominantly New Zealand dollar items. The Board has therefore adopted a policy of migrating cash generated from disposals of Australian dollar and UK sterling assets to New Zealand dollars to balance the exposure.\n \nCapital Return and Dividend\n \nAs a consequence of the Scheme of Arrangement £80 million was returned to shareholders on 12 July 2...