Our investing takes many forms and can include acquiring entire businesses or portions thereof, investing in equity, investing in the existing indebtedness (secured and unsecured) of a business or in new equity or debt issues.

We invest globally and our objective is to maximize total return measured through both long-term appreciation and recognized gains either through sales or other forms of divestment. We realize upon our portfolio of proprietary investments from time to time, based upon management's view of the value of the investment, the form and structure of divestment, timing and our overall capital requirements.

With the downturn in the global economy, opportunities are becoming more visible. Valuations of several, what look to be, complementary projects have been coming closer to much more sensible levels. We will, however, maintain our strict level of discipline in assessing risk. Ensuring the effectiveness of our strategy demands constant review and attention in order for it to reflect our commitment to developing wealth for our shareholders.

With the global slowdown this year, growth is not anticipated in our markets. But opportunities could arise given our strategy and structure. The more problems which develop in the market the more opportunities appear available to us. As part of our internal growth strategy, we intend to pursue an active program of seeking out projects that will complement our operations. We will continue to evaluate our operations and we may propose exiting additional businesses, markets or service platforms in order to better align our operations with our strategic objectives.