INVESTORS ENCOURAGED TO BUY IRISH STOCKS - NCB stockbrokers are hosting a hosting an event in a Dublin hotel today where Irish and international investors meet representatives of around 15 well known companies on the Irish stock exchange. This event is taking place against falling share values, slashed dividends and global recession.
Head of Sales at NCB Stockbrokers John Sheehan says that as stock valuations have fallen, investors are looking at company's earnings prospects, the company's position in its markets, where it is making its money from and how resilient its profits and earnings will remain. He describes it as a defensive type of business. Dividends will also be focused on. The stockbroker says that over the last year or so, a huge range of dividend cuts have been seen and so what might have seemed as a pretty safe dividend in the past has not proved to be quite as secure.
***
DONSEED IN MAJOR LONDON OLYMPIC WIN - Co Kerry-based company Donseed of Tralee has signed a deal with one of the big construction companies working on the Athletes Village in London for the 2012 Olympics. The company provides software, in this case to a construction company, which allows them to track who is on their site, at any given site, using biometric data. The deal today is part of €1m worth of new sales the company expects this year.
Vincent Lynch, Donseed's CEO, explains that when workers arrive on site, they clock in using their finger prints. The worker's time and attendance times is then sent over the mobile network in 'real time' to a computer. What it means is that a worker is only paid for time worked and a company can easily evaluate its sub-contractor claims.
***
MORNING BRIEFS - Yesterday saw another good day on the markets. This time the bounce was not created by trillion dollar stimulus packages but on actual news indicating that there just might be light at the end of the US recessionary tunnel. Yesterday, US commerce figures showed new home sales rose at their fastest pace in 10 months in February. And it also said that sales of US-made durable goods showed an unexpected 3.9% increase, the biggest percentage gain since mid 2005. Last night on Wall Street, the Dow Jones closed almost 1.2% higher while the Standard & Poors and the Nasdaq were up almost 1%.
*** One of AIG's top executives - Jake DeSantis - who got a share of the controversial $165m bonus pay out at the company that outraged President Obama has resigned his job after 11 years. He wrote a letter about it to the New York Times, citing betrayal by his employer and "unfair persecution" by elected US officials.
*** Fashion chain Next said it faced a 'double challenge' from a weaker sterling and a faltering economy in 2009 as it unveiled a 14% fall in annual profits. The firm expects like-for-like sales at its stores to slide by between 6% and 9% during a 'particularly difficult' first half of the year.
*** Financial services company IFG Group has reported pre-tax profits of €12m for 2008 as the firm reported particularly difficult markets and a weak sterling. It had reported pre-tax profits of over €15m in 2007. Revenues fell from €129.8m to €109m with the company predicting that 2009 will be a very challenging year for it
*** On the currency markets, the euro this morning is worth $1.3573 and 93.1 pence sterling.
