Witan investment trust's move to reduce UK exposure was not enough to avoid sharp declines in the first six months of the year, with the £1.15bn company's share price plunging 12.6% and net asset value declining 11.4%.
Its share price at 30 June fell to 418.25p, a 12.2% discount on its 476.4p per ordinary share value. Chairman Harry Henderson says the result was “obviously disappointing”, but called on investors to put the falls into perspective. “The net asset value per ordinary share has performed ahead of its benchmark by 0.6%; yet again the outperformance is mainly a result of the share buy-back programme,” he says. “Your board has reduced the trust's exposure to the United Kingdom, whose economy and stockmarket have not only been adversely affected by the global credit crunch but also by its ...
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