Statement from Jonathan Davie:
WELCOME
I am pleased to present the second Year-End Report for Hansa Investment Company Limited to shareholders.
Our financial year has seen some of the greatest social and economic upheavals of modern times, as the world wrestled with the impact of the Covid-19 virus. During our year, we have all observed governments try a variety of strategies to contain the virus and protect their populations as treatments and vaccines were developed. It is very encouraging to see the excellent progress made in many parts of the world in combating the pandemic. I am pleased to say that, at the end of our year, the fight back is well and truly underway and, whilst I am sure there will be bumps in the road, vaccines have been shown to be highly effective.
Unsurprisingly, it has been a very challenging year for the investment management community, with many finding themselves caught out, either being invested in the wrong sectors, or selling just at the wrong time as markets initially fell sharply and then rebounded almost as quickly. We have been very fortunate that our Portfolio Manager, Alec Letchfield, invested the Company in sectors that have proven to be very resilient during this period. Alec has written a detailed analysis in his Portfolio Manager's Report which I recommend to you.
I also draw your attention to my Chairman's Report to the Shareholders. Whilst I have left Alec to cover the wider market and our portfolio in some detail, in my report I summarise the outcomes of a strategy review the Board undertook during the year with our Portfolio Manager and our Broker, Winterflood. The review was to reconfirm our overall strategy and also to consider options available to the Board, to try to reduce the stubborn discount that both of the Company's share classes continue to experience. These topics were also raised in our most recent online shareholder presentation. If you missed this event, the slides and audio are available on our website.
Finally, I remind you that details of our upcoming AGM are at the back of this Annual Report. Please do take the time to read, consider and vote if eligible to do so.
Yours sincerely
Jonathan Davie