A break beckons, so this may be the last posting for a while. So, first a look at the newly-posted accounts of the property company runs by David Pearl, who famously cycles around his North London patch seeking bargains. Second a preview at what's contained in today's Standard column.
The accounts to September 2010 for Structadene show Pearl's heavily leveraged business has made it through the recession. Asset values are down from £892m to £655m. But liabilities have fallen from £785m to £553m, leaving net assets of £111m, close to last year's £104m.
The P&L account shows why the asset values have fallen by £237m - through sales. A profit from disposals of £13m accounts for more than half the pre-tax profits of £22m - which are about the same as last year. Rising values should put Pearl in a better position this time next year.
But a note on the accounts does show Pearl is having a Stamp Duty spat with HMRC. Well, not exactly a spat: Customs wants to extract the sum of £6,889,950 in duty from Structadene. But Pearl's layers are contesting the charge and have confidently made no provision in the accounts
Today's column reveals the name of 560-foot residential tower planned in Cherry Orchard Road, Croydon - it's a type of Cherry! There is also news that the floating pontoon on the Thames might not only get built in time for 2012 - it may become a permanent tourist attraction: just like the Millennium Wheel.
But more serious is the analysis of the £1b bid made by Wellcome for the Olympic Park and the ticklish decision that has reached all up to Downing Street on whether to go for the highest bidder for the Olympic Village - or give over the whole park to Wellcome. Expect a decision in the next two weeks, or sooner.
