19th Jan 2007 11:59
Aberdeen Asset Management PLC19 January 2007 19 January, 2007 ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT PLC ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT As you will have seen from the Annual Report, the year to 30 September 2006 wasa highly successful period with the Group achieving a record level of profit. Akey factor in 2006 was the healthy rate of new business inflows and I am pleasedto report that the first quarter of the new financial year has continued insimilar vein. Net new business added in the quarter to 31 December 2006 was £0.7 billion andwe have been awarded further mandates totalling £3.7 billion which had not beenfunded by that date and will be added to assets under management in the comingweeks. It is encouraging to note that the inflows are well diversified, with newmandates added by our fixed income team; the Asia-Pacific, global emergingmarkets and global equities teams; and the property division. The effect of the new business flows which are coming in at improved margins,together with market appreciation and performance is that assets undermanagement at 31 December stood at £75.6 billion, an increase of 3.4% on theposition at 30 September 2006. The integration of the Deutsche Asset Management business is progressingsatisfactorily, with all of the UK funds now having migrated onto theadministration systems provided by our third party administration serviceprovider. The US mandates will be transferred during the current quarter andthis will conclude what has been an enormous, and complex, exercise. We have now redeemed the remaining £25 million of 5.875% Convertible Bonds 2007,which will bring additional clarity to the balance sheet and I am pleased toconfirm that the Financial Services Authority issued its formal notification ofthe grant of a waiver from the requirements for consolidated supervision, whichbecame effective from 1 January 2007. Our strategy over the remainder of the year will be to enhance our businessdevelopment capability so that we can grasp opportunities to promote our diverseproduct range. We have already added additional resource in the US and we haveopened a research office in Tokyo and we will also be increasing our effort inEurope, with the addition of offices in Luxembourg and Frankfurt. These are allareas where we have already enjoyed some success in asset gathering and we willbe looking to build on this position. Looking ahead, we are mindful of the current interest rate environment and weremain cautious on the outlook for financial markets. However, the balancedprofile of our business and the stability of our investment process leave theGroup well placed to achieve further profitable growth. ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT 31 Dec 06 30 Sep 06 £m £mInstitutional funds 58,108 56,498Open end funds 11,689 10,835Closed end funds 5,376 5,392Private equity & other 474 445 ---------- ---------- 75,647 73,170 ---------- ---------- By asset class:Fixed income 39,423 38,126Equities 29,702 28,456Property 6,522 6,588 ---------- ---------- 75,647 73,170 ---------- ---------- For further information: Maitland 020 7379 5151Neil Bennett This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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