It's Christmas, but I have bought only a tiny number of presents and sent cards to only a small subset of those I'd like to (mainly on the basis of who I always send cards to, however little I see them in the year).
I was going to write a blog going through things I'd seen or done during the year, but that really wouldn't be very interesting either to you or me. Apologies if that applies to the rest of my entries, to you at least.
I'd first like to say thanks to my good friend and now former colleague, Lua Meng. I've learned a lot about China, and about the Chinese from Lua. Of course, the main thing I've learned is that they are all very different, and that their culture doesn't actually make them very different to the rest of humanity. It was due to Lua that I started to invest in Chinese real estate, which has actually been a very successful venture. There aren't many markets where I could have invested and still made money recently, but Zhuhai is one of them. Admittedly most of the gains come from the appreciation of the renminbi against the pound, but that exposure was one I actively sought when I started investing. Little did I know that the pound would sink like a stone within nine months. I'd also like to say thanks to Ashley for making us so welcome in Beijing and to MWH for managing my properties in Zhuhai and to their parents for bringing up such a splendid family.
I'd next like to say thanks to Gary Dickenson and Tony Palanca and Jacky Lau, the key China Direct Partners. I met Gary this April, and was immediately impressed by the proposition that construction companies in the UK could secure significant savings by sourcing direct from China. Since then I've heard several hundred reasons why this should not be the case, principally from sceptical potential customers. It is true that, with the implosion of the UK construction industry, I haven't exactly had a flood of orders. Nevertheless, I believe that my time will come with CDP. The RMB will weaken, the UK construction industry will recover, UK manufacturers will get more expensive, the tax burden on UK manufacturers will destroy their international competitiveness, and distributors will widen their margins to the point where direct procurement becomes a compelling proposition. I know this probably sounds like a sales pitch, but I happen to believe it.
Next I'd like to say thanks to Mervyn King and the boys and girls at the MPC. The drop in the repo rate has made a real difference to my cost of funds. Nothing much has fed through, but because all my borrowing is on tracker rates I should see significant savings in financing costs - by far the dominant ones - in the new year. Costs of funds for lowly-geared investment companies like mine remain crippling. This is a subject very close to my heart, but I don't want to waste Christmas day riding my hobby horse.
Next I'd like to say thanks to Brad Davis at Pension Practitioner.com. This is one of a new breed of specialist pension administration companies that allows SSAS trustees to dispense with the services of an actuary. For many pension schemes an actuary may be good value. For a small scheme like mine, with one or two beneficiaries, the costs involved are wholly disproportionate. Since the 2005 Pensions Act (don't quote me on that) the requirement for a pensioneer trustee has evaporated, and, frankly, huge savings can be made. I've spend a lot of money on actuarial services for my SSAS, but frankly I've seen no benefit from it except a knowledge that I have complied with the law and don't need to worry about being arrested. Now it's simply an unaffordable luxury.
Next, I'd like to say thanks to Steve Nye at the Robin Hood and Little John in Rabley Heath. If you live in the Knebworth/Codicote area I urge you to try it. It's a traditional pub with food and good beer and either no music, or music quiet enough not to be noticed.
Last, but not least I'd like to say thanks to my family. They have been wonderfully indulgent to me for yet another year.
