Monthly Update

RNS Number : 9086Y

British Empire Sec & Gen Tst PLC

11 July 2008

 



BRITISH EMPIRE SECURITIES AND GENERAL TRUST PLC

Performance Commentary

This investment management report relates to performance figures as at 30 June 2008.

Over the month NAV was down 10.6%1. This compares to a decrease of 7.3%2 in the benchmark and a decrease of 8.6%1 and 7.1%1 for the MSCI World and FTSE All Share indices respectively.

Financial* year to date, net asset value fell 13.4%1 compared to a decrease of 8.7%2 for the Datastream index, 10.3%1 for the MSCI World (£) and 11.5%1 for the FTSE All Share.

Over three years NAV is up 32.6%1 while the FTSE All Share is up 23.2%1.

Manager's Comment

Equity markets fell sharply over the month. Less liquid and smaller capitalisation stocks were particularly hard hit and so, despite having 7% net cash, we underperformed on the month. The more encouraging aspect of this rather gloomy picture is that discounts in our universe of stocks are as wide as they have been for many years. Investors are succumbing to pessimism and we are able to make new investments at what we believe are attractive valuations that will pay off over time.

Statistics

	Value	% 1 mo	% 1 yr	% 3 yr	% 5 yr
Price(£)1	429.8	-9.5	-5.4	28.1	149.1
Net Asset Value1	432.0	-10.6	-13.5	28.3	123.6
Net Asset Value Total Return1		-10.6	-12.5	32.6	134.2
Benchmark2 (£)		-7.3	-7.6	31.8	81.2
Annual Returns (%)	2007	2006	2005	2004	2003
Price1	-2.8	0.3	51.7	36.0	41.6
MSCI World1	7.7	5.8	23.0	7.2	20.6

 

Top 10 Equity Holdings                                                  %

Sofina	4.78
Investor AB	4.38
Jardine Strategic	3.99
Jardine Matheson	3.54
GBL	3.32
Vivendi	2.92
Paris Orléans	2.84
Electra Private Equity	2.80
Holmen	2.41
Pargesa	2.38

Capital Structure

Ordinary Shares	160,080,089
10 3/8% Debenture stock 2011	£8,514,940
8 1/8% Debenture stock 2023	£15,000,000
Equities index unsecured loan stock 2013**	2,730,231

** Updated annually

Gross Assets/Gearing

Gross Assets	£730 mil.
Debt	£ 26.9 mil.
Actual Gearing (Debt less cash divided by net asset value)	-7.3%

Fund Codes

Bloomberg	Reuters Ticker / ISIN
BTEM	GB0001335081

Geographical Breakdown

Continental Europe	36.2%
Japan	12.1%
Canada / US	5.4%
Asia Pacific	10.5%
UK	20.5%
Liquidity	11.2%
EMEA	4.1%

All figures as at 30 June 2008 unless otherwise stated. All sources Asset Value Investors Ltd unless otherwise stated. British Empire Securities & General Trust Plc is managed by Asset Value Investors Ltd. The price of shares and the income from them may go down as well as up; they can be affected by exchange rate movements between currencies and it is possible that investors may not get back the full amount invested on disposal of the shares. Past performance is no guarantee of future performance. Investments in emerging markets carries a greater degree of risk, in particular the volatility of the markets and the local custody and registration arrangements, which may be less developed than in more mature markets. There is no guarantee that the market price of shares in Investment Trusts will fully reflect their underlying Net Asset Value (NAV). This Investment Trust should be considered only as part of a balanced portfolio, of which it should not form a disproportionate part. Under no circumstances should this information be considered as an offer, or solicitation, to deal in investments. Issued by Asset Value Investors Ltd., which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

 

END

 

 

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