The Times - UK (2022-01-01)

the times | Saturday January 1 2022 2GM 45

Business

Ben Martin Senior City Correspondent

Britain’s benchmark share index has
shrugged off a resurgence in Covid-19
cases to complete its biggest annual rise
in five years.
The FTSE 100 finished a shortened
New Year’s Eve trading session at
7,384.54, down 18.47 points, or 0.25 per
cent, on the day but up 14.3 per cent
over the past 12 months.
It marks the best annual perform-
ance by the index since 2016, when the
FTSE 100, which is weighted towards
companies that earn their money over-
seas, was lifted by sterling’s sharp fall in
the wake of the Brexit vote.
It was boosted in 2021 by Covid
vaccinations in the UK and elsewhere,
which raised investors’ hopes that an
end to the global pandemic was in sight.
The index was also buoyed by a rally in
the shares of its commodities compa-
nies, including BP and Royal Dutch
Shell, the oil majors, which were lifted
by a significant jump in the price of
crude oil.
On Wall Street last night, the Dow
Jones industrial average and S&P 500
completed record-breaking years. The
Dow achieved its largest ever one-year
points gain, based on data going back to
1896, and the S&P its record annual
gain, on figures going back to 1928. The
Dow is up 5731.82 points, or 18.7 per
cent, this year and the S&P ahead by
1,010.11 points or 26.9 per cent — its first
recorded annual advance of 1,000
points or more.
This was despite small falls yesterday,
with the Dow losing 59.78 points, or
0.2 per cent, to end on 36,338.30 and

commoditiescommodities currenciescurrencies

$

1.400

1.350

1.300

1.250

$

£/$

$1.3543 (+0.0044)

90

80

70

60

Dow Jones

36,338.30 (-59.78)

38,000

36,000

34,000

32,000

1.200

1.175

1.150

1.125

Dec 2 10 20 28 Dec 2 10 20 28 Dec 2 10 20 28 Dec 2 10 20 28 Dec 2 10 20 28

£/€

€1.1900 (-0.0026) ¤

world markets (Change on the day)

Gold

$1,826.13 (+12.02) $

2,000

1,800

1,600

1,400

Brent crude (6pm)

$78.06 (-1.14)

FTSE 100

7,384.54 (-18.47)

Nov 30 Dec 8 16 24

7,500

7,000

6,500

6,000

The American owner of Boots received
a takeover approach from Bain Capital
more than two months ago that started
the potential sale of the British high
street chain, The Times has learnt.
It is understood that Bain, the private
equity firm that recently failed in its
attempt to buy LV=, the insurer, is
positioning itself as a frontrunner in a
forthcoming auction for Boots after

Private equity firms set for tilt at Boots after approach by Bain

Ashley Armstrong Retail Editor completing months of due diligence on
the health and beauty retailer.
The firm has sounded out a handful
of retail industry veterans about
chairing Boots should it be successful. A
Bain Capital spokesman declined to
comment.
Last month it emerged that Wal-
greens Boots Alliance had instructed
Goldman Sachs, the American invest-
ment bank, to explore options for
Boots, which bankers said was an

attempt to flush out more interest and

fetch a higher price for the company.

Boots was founded by John Boot in

1859 in Nottingham, selling herbal

remedies. Owned by Walgreens since

2014, it has 2,200 shops and 550 opti-

cians employs about 51,000 people.

Initial reports suggested that Boots

could be valued at as much as

£12 billion, but several sources said that

the price tag would be much more likely

to be about £6 billion to £7 billion.

Industry bankers said that the group

was unlikely to sell for more than the

recent £7.1 billion Wm Morrison take-

over because Boots owned the freehold

of only about a quarter of its shops,

which reduces its value.

Nevertheless, the world’s largest

private equity firms, including CVC,

Carlyle, KKR, Blackstone, Advent and

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, are thought

to be exploring an offer because Boots

presents a rare opportunity to put their

billions of undeployed capital to work.

One banker said that while Boots was

not fast-growing, it was resilient and

generated huge amounts of cash. Boots

has also started offering more health-

care services, such as its GP trial in

Brighton and the rollout of vaccines.

J Sainsbury and Tesco also have been

tipped by analysts as potential buyers of

Boots. One banker said that a deal with

Sainsbury’s made a lot of sense because

of their large customer overlaps.

Alice Cooper, above,

Bob Seger, Rage

Against The Machine

and Rebelution, an

American reggae band,

for an undisclosed sum

(Robert Miller writes).

Round Hill Music

Royalty Fund, a

Guernsey-based music

copyright investment

company that was

founded in 2010, said

Katherine Griffiths

Wine connoisseurs are set to increase

their efforts to snap up some of the

world’s great vintages amid concerns

that climate change could lead to some

disappearing for ever.

The issue has driven up sales of

famous wines and will continue to do

so, experts have predicted.

Sales of fine wines rose by 15 per cent

in 2021, with demand being driven by

wealthy consumers, particularly in

Asia and the United States, according

to Matthew O’Connell, chief executive

of LiveTrade, an online fine wine trad-

ing platform.

Climate and changing weather

patterns are becoming a key considera-

tion in investment decisions about

wine, he said. “A few years ago, we

would rarely get asked about climate

change in the context of wine; today, it

is usually in the top five questions new

investors would ask us.”

The French government has esti-

mated that last year’s wine production

will be down about 30 per cent to a

historically low level because of cata-

strophic frosts and floods earlier in the

year. These events caused a big fall in

wine produced in Burgundy.

In America, the 2020 vintage was

wiped out for many top producers in

Napa, California, after outbreaks of fire.

Bushfires in Australia in 2019 and 2020

and unusual frosts and hail in Italy also

caused a big drop in wine production.

Denis Houles, a veteran of the wine

industry who set up 1275 Collections, a

business that tracks wines through all

stages of production and ownership,

said: “The world’s greatest wines —

some with centuries of history — are

changing and could disappear entirely

as climates become harsher. Unfortu-

nately, unlike luxury handbags or

watches, once they are gone, that’s it.”

This year will be driven by other

trends, too, including a desire to pick up

real assets as a protection against

inflation, wine experts suggest.

Vaccines boost investors’ optimism on Covid-19

FTSE enjoys

biggest rise

in f ive years

the S&P sliding 12.55 points, 0.3 per

cent, to 4,766.18.

Elsewhere among benchmark stock

indices, the Merval in Argentina was a

standout performer, up 63 per cent on

the year. The Stoxx 600 pan-European

equity index climbed by 22.5 per cent in

2021 and finished close to a record,

while the CAC 40 in France added

29 per cent over the 12 months and also

ended the year near its peak.

London’s mid-cap FTSE 250 index,

more heavily weighted towards compa-

nies that have a greater exposure to the

British economy, was up 14.6 per cent

for the year, despite drifting 58.74 points

lower, or 0.25 per cent, to close at

23,480.81 on the last day of 2021.

The rise in equities comes despite an

increase in Covid infections in recent

days. Investors’ worries have been tem-

pered by evidence that the Omicron

variant of the virus causes less severe

illness. This helped the FTSE 100 to hit

its highest point since February 2020

on Wednesday.

However, London’s leading index has

taken longer to return to its pre-pan-

demic level than peers in Europe and

the United States. UK-listed shares

have tended to underperform since the

Brexit referendum five years ago.

While there was relief that a no-deal

Brexit was avoided, some international

investors are waiting to see the long-

term effects of the vote and have

shunned UK equities.

Sterling hit a 22-month high against

the euro yesterday as worries about the

pandemic waned, although it fell back

later to stand at €1.1889.

Leaders and laggards, pages 46-47

SCOTT LEGATO/GETTY IMAGES

Climate change

triggers race to

snap up world’s

great vintages

A

London-

listed music

fund has

acquired the

catalogues

of artists including

that the catalogue of

308 tracks had been

bought from Jack

Richardson and his son

Garth, two Canadian

music producers, and

would help to further

diversify its portfolio.

It includes songs

such as Killing in the

Name by Rage Against

the Machine and Night

Moves by Bob Seger.

Alice Cooper

sounds good

to Round Hill