Scottish Business Briefing – January 16th
FINANCE
Aberdeen funds hit by negative market sentiment
Fund manager Aberdeen Asset Management today blamed gloomy market conditions across Asia and emerging markets for a fall in assets under management during the first quarter. The firm said assets under management dropped to £193.6 billion during the three months to the end of December, down from £200.4bn in September.However, chief executive Martin Gilbert said Aberdeen has a strong pipeline of new business, which is expected to deliver an additional £2bn of assets early this year.
ECONOMY
Scotland’s economy on ‘road to recovery’
Scotland is on the “road to recovery” with the economy having enjoyed continuous growth for 18 months in a row, official figures showed yesterday. And the revival is expected to continue throughout 2014, according to finance leaders, with all sectors of industry performing strongly. The economy expanded by 0.7 per cent between July and September last year, meaning Scotland has enjoyed growth for the past six quarters.
Chambers warning over Scotland’s economic recovery
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Hide AdFURTHER action may be needed to support Scotland’s “fragile” economic recovery, according to a hard-hitting report published today. Business confidence during the fourth quarter of last year was stronger than in the final months of 2012, the latest poll conducted by the Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) and Strathclyde University’s Fraser of Allander Institute found. This was the case across all sectors, with manufacturing, construction, retail and tourism all at their most buoyant since the onset of the recession.
ENERGY
Ithaca Energy planning to invest heavily in North Sea
NORTH Sea-focused Ithaca Energy has underlined its appetite for more acreage in the area, where it is planning hefty investment this year. In an update on operations the Aberdeen-based company said: “During 2014, the company will continue to seek opportunities to enhance the value of its existing UK portfolio. “The company’s growth strategy remains focused on securing appraisal, development and production opportunities.”
Scotsman Conference
Join us and the Scottish Council on Archives as we bring the first event of its kind to Scotland. Fiona Hyslop MSP Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs and Annelies van den Belt, CEO of DC Thomson Family History are among some of the expert speakers that will aim to raise awareness of digital records among key decision-makers across different sectors, help build a Scottish digital records community to collaborate on finding the best technological solutions and securing investment and examine the options for ensuring long term access to valuable digital resources. Visit the Scotsman Conferences website for more details.
TRANSPORT & INDUSTRY
Semco Maritime plans rig refurbishment base at port
CROMARTY Firth Port Authority (CFPA) has signed a deal with Semco Maritime, which will see the Danish company establishing a rig refurbishment base in the firth at Invergordon. Semco Maritime is a leading project engineering company in the global energy sector and is investing £5 million in the project. It is already working in partnership with ports in Norway, Denmark and Vietnam.
MEDIA, TECH & LEISURE
Goals Soccer Centres in attacking mode
Five-a-side football pitch operator Goals Soccer Centres today said it was poised to start rolling out new venues after telling investors that its trading in the past year has been in line with market expectations. Five-a-side football pitch operator Goals Soccer Centres will kick off a new wave of expansion this year after paying down debt and bolstering its head office set-up.