Report for November 2009

After a small stumble in October, the FTSE100 and our portfolio resumed their steady rise that started back in February. The FTSE100 gained 108 to 5246 (2%) while the portfolio gained £489 to £15,096 (3%). The main contributors were Severn Trent and BHP Billiton, but ithe rise was pretty well spread across the board, apart from Island Oil & Gas which seems to slipping slowly away and making staff redundant. The Unit Value has risen to 106.

Our Dixons (DSG) bond has produced its annual dividend of £61: it matures in 3 years' time, and will yield a further capital gain as it is still well below par presently at 84 pence. Our property unit trust (New Star International) is still struggling and is worth only half what we paid for it, but when Dubai bounces back (?) it should recover.