The hunt for yield leaves UK shores

The hunt for yield leaves UK shores

Published: March 13 2009 18:23 | Last updated: March 13 2009 18:23

A growing number of fund managers are casting their nets outside the UK to find high-yielding income stocks – as the pool of UK companies offering attractive dividend yields recedes further.

Companies in the UK now lag behind those of Japan, North America, much of Asia, Europe and many emerging markets in providing year-on-year growth in dividend yields, according to research released this week by Legg Mason, the fund manager.

Only one UK company appears in the rankings of the world’s top 100 yielding stocks – and only just. GKN, the engineering group with a dividend yield of 14.1 per cent, is ranked 97th.

There are 17 Taiwanese names on the list; nine each from Australia and Canada; six from the US; and five from Israel.

The most eye-catching are: Incitec Pivot, the Australian chemical manufacturer offering a yield of 89.8 per cent; International Nickel Indonesia at 68.1 per cent; and Fortis, the Belgian financial services conglomerate which provides a 63.5 per cent yield.

A decade ago, UK companies offered much higher dividend yields, on average, than companies elsewhere. As a result, equity income fund managers tended to allocate at least 50 per cent of their funds to high-yielding UK stocks. But in the past five years, this trend has reversed and global income funds are becoming more popular.

Invesco Perpetual is the latest UK fund house to introduce a global equity income fund, with a launch at the start of the month. For manager Paul Boyne, a bottom-up stockpicker, the advantage of running a global income fund is that it offers the chance to “cherry-pick” stocks in the wider market. Less than 20 per cent of the fund is in UK companies, and Asia holds as much appeal, he says. Holdings are spread across sectors, spanning pharmaceuticals and tobacco to European energy stocks.

Jeremy Tigue, manager of the Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust, the UK’s oldest investment trust, reports increasing success finding higher yields with adequate dividend cover in emerging markets, which he has been exploring since 2003.

“Our expectation back then was that we would suffer a big fall in income by pushing into emerging markets, but we didn’t,” he says. “And I think companies in emerging markets have stronger financial positions and better growth prospects than companies elsewhere.”

He hunts for companies offering dividends covered at least twice by earnings and his favoured picks include Microsoft, which has seen its shares fall by more than a third in the last year, Nokia and BP.

In the past six months, the returns from global equity income funds such as the ones run by Schroders (down 28.5 per cent) and Threadneedle (down 26 per cent) have been as poor as those provided by counterparts in the UK equity income sector. And Boyne and other managers are equally fearful that, as companies look to preserve capital, another round of dividend cuts across the wider market will depress returns. “The sustainability of dividends is the issue,” Boyne says.

But investing in a wider market offers greater diversification and global fund managers are not being forced to take as many precautions as managers of UK equity income funds. With the yield on the FTSE All Share index – which now stands at 5.6 per cent – projected to fall, more UK equity income fund managers are adopting defensive positions, and in some cases, holding bonds to compensate for a shortfall.

While the sharp fall in the pound has helped managers of UK funds denominated in sterling but receiving dividends in other currencies, the threat of further cuts to UK payouts is now a worry.

The top 10 dividend payers in the FTSE 100, led by BP, Shell and Vodafone, account for 60 per cent of total expected dividend payouts for the entire UK market, according to Citigroup.

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FX factor cuts into samurai growth

By Lindsay Whipp in Tokyo

Published: March 13 2009 02:00 | Last updated: March 13 2009 02:00

The nascent revival of Japan's samurai bond market has hit headwinds because of the elevated costs of converting the yen proceeds into dollars.

The samurai market - yen bonds issued by foreign institutions to Japanese investors - was closed after the collapse of Lehman Brothers as investors became risk averse.

But as the market resuscitates and investor demand returns for government-guaranteed samurai bonds, such as those sold by Westpac and ANZ Banking in early February, issuers are facing a new set of difficulties.

Normally, (before the Lehman shock) the yen-dollar five-year basis swap traded around zero, bankers say. At the end of last month, the basis swap widened to a record minus 85 basis points, meaning an institution would have to pay 0.85 per cent in interest to convert the proceeds into dollars.

While it has recovered a little, the basis remains at around minus 53bp, bankers say.

The main problem is a lack of liquidity in the market, in part due to fewer participants.

"There is no natural issuer or investors who want to fund in yen," said Tatsuo Ichikawa, a rates strategist at Royal Bank of Scotland.

ANZ Banking, which issued Y150bn ($1.52bn) in early February, was already feeling the pain of the higher costs in the market.

Despite having demand in excess of Y200bn, the Australian bank issued less in light of soaring costs. In addition, market participants were expecting similar issues to follow ANZ, but they haven't happened.

Speculation in the basis market about Westpac's Y245bn samurai, which re-opened the market in early February, contributed to the decline in the basis swap, which continued as Westpac tapped the market.

"If you look back, the average monthly [samurai] issuance has been around Y200bn, so a big one-shot issuance when the market liquidity was not there obviously impacted the market," said Mr Ichikawa.

Market participants talk about the recent forced liquidation of positions also contributing to the market widening to a record.

So why has liquidity disappeared for the opposite side of the trade? In other words, why are there so few market participants willing to buy yen from the yen bond issuers and others tapping the basis swap markets.

There are two reasons, says Duncan Phillips, a vice president in Nikko Citigroup's debt syndicate team.

One is related to the carry trade, where low cost yen was lent to leveraged players, and has also significantly diminished.

"With a basis swap, those lenders [to the carry traders] could source yen and eliminate their forex risks at the same time," Mr Phillips says.

Another is the significant slowing of foreign investment into Japan.

"With a basis swap, investors could convert their home currency into yen, buy the asset and have the periodic yen cash flows paid to them in the home currency", Mr Phillips says. "With reduced leverage globally and weaker growth in Japan, these flows have slowed significantly."

Given these additional costs, issuers could start to consider issuing in alternative markets if they do not want to wait until the basis improves.

"Particularly for US investors who are reasonably sensitive to relative funding costs if there's an alternative source [for funding] it is understandable not to proceed [in the samurai market]," says one market participant.

However, the yen bond market is not completely closed. Demand for the Australian banks' government-guaranteed bonds was strong, as it is for the highest-rated bonds in general, and there have been smaller-sized issues from European institutions. The Indonesian government may also issue a samurai.

"While the disruptions in the basis swap market has made converting yen liabilities into dollars expensive, the cost of swapping into euros hasn't been so pronounced", Mr Phillips says.

"The resulting flurry of yen issuance by European institutions in recent weeks highlights ongoing demand in Japan for high-grade issuers."

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View of the Day: Saudi oil tactics

By Adam Robinson

Published: March 12 2009 16:14 | Last updated: March 12 2009 16:14

Saudi Arabia is far more capable of forcing the price of oil lower in the current weak demand environment than in past years, when consumption growth was relentless and the kingdom’s spare capacity was limited, says Adam Robinson, director of commodities at Armored Wolf, the hedge fund.

“Now might be the perfect time for the Saudis to crash the price of oil,” suggests Mr Robinson, who argues this tactic would force other producers to share the burden of output cutbacks and allow Riyadh to promote its interests with the new administration in Washington.

He argues that keeping Iran focused internally would allow Saudi Arabia a headstart in filling the political vacuum that will arise after the US withdrawal from Iraq.

“Ensuring an orderly US withdrawal and an Iraqi state independent of Iran is an existential issue for the Saudis,” says Mr Robinson.

Armored Wolf notes that Iran’s budget is under severe pressure, even at current oil price levels, with only $20bn-$30bn of reserves left to fill the growing hole in the government’s finances.

“If oil prices fall from here, Tehran could run out of reserves by the summer,” Mr Robinson says.

He adds that it is not in Saudi Arabia’s interests to see higher oil prices during a global recession. However, Riyadh would keep quiet about its happiness with lower prices to avoid upsetting its allies in the Middle East.

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Saudi funds step in to boost lending

By Roula Khalaf in London

Published: March 13 2009 19:11 | Last updated: March 13 2009 19:11

Saudi Arabia will use state investment funds to extend credit to companies in an effort to make up for banks’ reluctance to lend and stimulate an economy hit by the collapse in oil prices.

According to Ibrahim al-Assaf, finance minister, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), a huge state investment vehicle that controls shares in some of the leading companies, is stepping up its level of lending, extending the maturing of loans available to companies and providing them with a five-year grace period.

While the PIF can lend only to companies in which it owns shares, the Industrial Development Fund and a government-owned credit savings bank are increasing their funding for small and medium-sized companies.

In an interview with the Financial Times ahead of this weekend’s Group of 20 finance ministers’ meeting in the UK, Mr Assaf said the economy of the world’s biggest oil exporter had not been as badly affected as others by the global financial crisis, in spite of the sharp drop in oil revenues.

Saudi banks have largely avoided investments in toxic assets but, nevertheless, they have been tightening their risk criteria.

According to Samba, a Saudi bank, lending to the private sector declined by 1 per cent in the second half of last year. The government has already injected $3bn (€2.3bn, £2.1bn) into the banking system, lowered reserve requirements on demand deposits and cut benchmark lending rates to 2 per cent.

“A stimulus for us is different from other countries. Others are stimulating an economy that is going backwards’
Ibrahim al-Assaf, finance minister, Saudi Arabia

But the measures have failed to stimulate lending. Samba estimates that as much as $39bn of projects had been put on hold or ­cancelled by mid-February.

Mr Assaf insisted that the state was determined to push ahead with its $400bn five-year investment programme in infrastructure and the oil industry, and had a sufficient cushion of savings from the high oil prices of recent years – government revenues reached a record $293bn last year – to support its plans.

The government announced in December the biggest budget ever, projecting a deficit for the first time since 2002. Saudi Arabia, Mr Assaf said, had the “largest” stimulus package among G20 countries.

“A stimulus for us is different from other countries,” he said. “Others are stimulating an economy that is going backwards. In Saudi Arabia the non-oil sector is still growing but we are spending more to substitute for the slowdown coming from the rest of the world, and now we can get goods and services at reasonable prices.”

Bankers say that while the non-oil sector will grow this year, the fall in oil prices will drag economic growth down to negative levels.

Mr Assaf said Saudi Arabia was ready to “play its role” in the G20 but he would not be drawn over whether that would include increasing contributions to the International Monetary Fund. The US has called for the IMF to be given up to $500bn more to help it assist countries hit by the crisis.

Analysts say that any increase in IMF contributions would be politically sensitive and would have to be delicately addressed at home, where public opinion wants the state’s resources to be fully targeted towards domestic spending.

Mr Assaf, however, made clear that Saudi Arabia was calling for an increase in the shares and voting powers of developing countries in international financial institutions. He said increases in developing countries’ quotas should be based on the ability and willingness of countries to contribute to IMF resources.

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Rusal pledges 25% of aluminium units to Moscow in $4.5bn rescue

By Catherine Belton in Moscow

Published: March 13 2009 02:00 | Last updated: March 13 2009 02:00

Oleg Deripaska's UC Rusal has pledged 25 per cent stakes in its main aluminium subsidiaries to the Russian state as an additional condition to a $4.5bn government bail-out loan, the head of the state-owned bank VEB has revealed.

The disclosure of the pledges on the $4.5bn (£3.2bn) loan Rusal received last autumn from VEB has provided further evidence of the extent of Moscow's grip on Mr Deripaska's metals empire as he battles to keep it afloat and restructure nearly $17bn in loans to foreign and Russian banks.

It had been revealed that Rusal pledged its 25 per cent stake in Norilsk Nickel, the world's biggest nickel miner, as collateral to VEB. In an interview with the Financial Times, Vladimir Dmitriev, VEB chairman, said his bank had taken collateral that fully covered the value of the $4.5bn bail-out loan his bank issued last October to prevent the Norilsk stake being seized by western creditors.

"From the point of view of security, VEB is probably in a better position than any of the western or Russian creditors," he said.

He declined to name the subsidiaries, however, saying only that his bank had taken pledges for 25 per cent stakes "in a series of aluminium enterprises that are key for Rusal".

"These are the company's most serious assets," he said.

Mr Dmitriev was speaking as Rusal embarks on restructuring talks with more than 70 foreign creditors after reaching a two-month standstill agreement on principal payments on $7.4bn in loans.

Foreign creditors are anxious to gauge the level of state support for the restructuring after the Russian government suspended a $50bn bail-out for Russian companies' foreign debts as hard currency reserves dwindled.

Mr Dmitriev said VEB and Rusal were not holding any talks either on restructuring the $4.5bn loan, which falls due at the end of October, or on an offer by Rusal to convert its nearly $7bn debt to state banks to a 16 per cent stake in the company in non-voting preferred shares.

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Russia relegated to second division

By George Parker in London

Published: March 13 2009 02:00 | Last updated: March 13 2009 02:00

The finance ministers of Australia, Russia and Canada arrive in Britain today for talks on the global economy, presumably unaware the Foreign Office has secretly relegated their countries to an unofficial G20 second division, writes George Parker in London .

A confidential paper obtained by the Financial Times reveals how Britain's G20 lobbying efforts have been targeted at "11 high- priority states" - an intriguing snapshot of how the Foreign Office sees the world.

Consigned to "Tier 2" along with Australia, which does not relish being patronised by "poms", and Russia, which has strained relations with London, are Argentina, Canada, Indonesia, Mexico and Turkey.

In the first tier are the US, Japan, France and Germany, described as "key G8 countries".

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Turkey launches first high speed train

By Delphine Strauss in Eskisehir

Published: March 13 2009 12:12 | Last updated: March 13 2009 12:12

Turkey’s first high speed train service pulled out of Ankara on Friday in a blaze of publicity designed to lure passengers back to a rail network that has changed little since the heyday of the Orient Express.

With business class seats sporting TV screens and power points to charge laptops, the Yuksek Hizli Tren is a far cry from the shabby rolling stock that trundles across Turkey on journeys running into two days on the longest routes.

Once the new link is complete, it will halve the journey time between Ankara and Istanbul to around three hours, making it a viable alternative to flying or driving for executives and bureaucrats shuttling between Turkey’s political and business capitals.

On board for the first scheduled journey, prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan took the microphone to announce proudly, ‘250 km/hr... 252’ as the train gathered speed.

But the line, inaugurated two weeks before municipal elections, for now runs only as far as the university town of Eskisehir - around halfway to its eventual destination. It will take another two years to complete the technically trickier section to Istanbul.

Some suspect longer term plans for a much more extensive high-speed network, stretching from the western port of Izmir to the Georgian border, are more a grand political gesture than an economically efficient answer to rising transport demand.

“We’ll connect Beijing to London by 2023,” claims Habib Soluk, transport undersecretary. Fast trains are in vogue, and Turkey wants to present itself as a hub for international connections between Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Caucasus.

But for Turkey, “high speed rail is doubtful,” said Rainer Mueller, author of an EU-funded report on the country’s infrastructure needs, pointing to very low passenger numbers and the high costs of laying track across mountainous terrain.

If the government finds financing and completes all the projects it is planning, rail usage could double by 2020 from its level in 2004, the study by TINA Vienna Transport Strategies found. But even then it would account for only 4.1 per cent of travel.

Counting only those projects that have already begun or secured financing, rail’s share of overall travel would actually decline by 2020 to 2.2 per cent of passenger km, with car and air travel growing faster and buses the busiest public transport option.

Now, the railways authorities are doing their best to attract new passengers, offering tickets for 5 TL throughout March. After, the price will be between 20 and 50 TL.

The original launch of the service in 2004 went disastrously wrong when, only months after opening, a train speeding over a section of track that could only take slower traffic derailed killing dozens of passengers.

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Capital suffers biggest fall in house prices

By Norma Cohen

Published: March 13 2009 09:30 | Last updated: March 13 2009 23:31

London house prices fell ­farther in January than anywhere else in the country, with every single borough showing a drop, according to the latest FT House Price Index.

The survey showed that the capital’s house prices fell an average 1.5 per cent in the first month of the year, faster than those in any other region in England and Wales. Greater London house prices were 12 per cent below their levels of the year before, in line with the rest of the country after withstanding the downward trend for much of 2008.

The starkest drop could be seen in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea, a favoured location for investment bankers and hedge fund managers. Average house prices there peaked last May at £1.2m but, as of January, were well below that at £861,013.

The City of Westminster, where average prices went on rising until September and peaked at more than £850,500, is now seeing average values of £703,166.

The London borough of Camden, which includes swanky neighbourhoods such as Hampstead and Highgate, saw average prices fall to £531,724 from a peak of £657,365.

For February, the Index recorded a 1 per cent drop with average prices standing 13.3 per cent below the level of a year ago. However, a detailed breakdown for the month will not be available until April.

Data for all 10 regions of England and Wales show prices falling on both a monthly and annual basis. It is the 12th consecutive monthly drop in house prices and the eighth in a row when prices fell 1 per cent or more.

Peter Williams, chairman of Acadametrics, which compiles the index on behalf of the Financial Times, said that a proportion of the 2.6m households – including nearly 1m first-time buyers – who purchased their homes within the past three years are feeling “quite exposed”.

“Given the scale of house price inflation in this decade, this fall is not a serious problem for most households,” he said. “For most, the solution will simply be to sit it out.”

The latest drop in the index came as new data from the Council on Mortgage Lenders showed that fewer than 9,000 first-time buyers entered the market in January – likely to be the lowest monthly total since records began in 1974.

First-time buyers help to underpin the housing market, providing demand for the homes of those who want to “trade up” the housing chain. However, one positive sign from the latest drop is that the 1 per cent fall in February suggests that the rate at which prices are falling may be tapering off. The biggest single monthly drop was in November, at 2.2 per cent, and each successive drop has been smaller.

However, Mr Williams said at a national level, the recession is gathering pace, fuelling arrears and possessions as well as adding to the stock of unsold homes on banks’ books that are rising with unemployment. That may make a housing recovery more difficult.

The South East saw the greatest drop in house prices in the past three months, falling at an annual pace of 13.8 per cent.

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UK Was 'Ground Zero For AIG Implosion'

5 hours 35 mins ago
SkyNews Sky News

* Print Story

Traders at a London office of AIG were responsible for massive losses that brought about the near collapse of the US insurer, the firm said.

Broadcaster ABC claimed the Mayfair-based team, led by American trader Joseph Cassano, risked half a trillion dollars (£359bn) investing in the toxic US mortgage market.

AIG has said the figure is inaccurate, but did admit in a statement that the unit nearly "brought down" the company.

The struggling insurer has avoided collapse through a massive state bail-out totalling more than 150 billion dollars (£108bn).

AIG is now 80% owned by the government as a result of attempts to prop up the struggling firm.

ABC said "ground zero" for the insurer's financial implosion was the AIG Financial Products branch in London.

It suggested that a series of disastrous deals saw billions pumped into risky mortgage debt.

Investigative reporter Peter Koenig told ABC's Good Morning America that the UK capital was the "epicentre" of the financial crisis.

He said: "For about a decade it went OK. And then, when the US housing market fell out instead, they suddenly realised they had to come up with a half a trillion dollars and all they had was a couple of million in the bank."

The Serious Fraud Office is currently investigating the losses made at the London base of AIG Financial Products.

Mr Cassano received $280m (£201m) in salary and bonuses over an eight-year period before his resignation in March last year, it has been reported.

AIG had admitted the trader and his team did contribute to the near-collapse. But it described reports of half a trillion dollar losses as inaccurate.

In a statement, the insurer added: "It was clear that this small unit engaged in trades that nearly brought down the company and its still sound insurance business."

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Greek carrier to be sold entirely to MIG: state TV

Yesterday, 10:48 pm
AFP

* Print Story

Greek-Emirates buyout group Marfin Investment will acquire all of troubled carrier Olympic Airlines after talks between the government and global handlers Swissport failed, Greek television said Friday.

Swissport had until Friday to reach agreement with the government after bidding 44.8 million euros (57.4 million dollars) for the ground handling assets of troubled Olympic which loses Greece hundreds of millions each year.

But under a deal reached last week Marfin Investment Group (MIG) was already prepared to step in for Swissport for the same amount, NET said.

The Greek development ministry could not immediately be reached for comment.

The country's largest investment group, MIG last month submitted offers of 45.7 million euro for Olympic's flight operations and 16.7 million euros for its maintenance, repair and overhaul assets.

Including the recovery of another 70 million euros set aside to create Pantheon, a temporary holding company for Olympic, the Greek state expects to make 177.2 million euros from the airline founded by legendary tycoon Aristotle Onassis five decades ago.

The company currently costs taxpayers 350 million euros a year to keep in the air, Development Minister Costis Hatzidakis said on Wednesday.

The sale which has been approved by the European Commission will be completed by September, the government said.

Thousands of OA staff have been offered compensation packages and other jobs in the Greek civil service.

The airline had long been the target of state aid concerns from the European Commission, which last year approved earlier privatisation plans while also demanding 850 billion euros in public money to be recovered.

Listed on the Athens Stock exchange, 58 percent of MIG's share capital is held by Greek strategic investors. International investors hold another 24 percent and Dubai Group owns the remaining 18 percent.

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「ダウンロード違法化」「検索キャッシュ合法化」盛り込んだ著作権法改正案が閣議決定
いわゆる「ダウンロード違法化」などを盛り込んだ著作権法改正案が閣議決定した。ネット時代への対応を主眼に置いた改正案だ。
2009年03月11日 15時53分 更新

　政府は3月10日の閣議で、いわゆる「ダウンロード違法化」などを盛り込んだ著作権法改正案を閣議決定した。ネット時代への対応を主眼に置いた改正案で、今国会に提出し、来年1月1日の施行を目指す。

　改正案では、違法録音・録画物を違法と知りながらダウンロードする行為を禁止。違法着うたの広がりなどに対応した規定で、罰則はない。

　検索エンジンのキャッシュや、データバックアップのためのキャッシュは著作者の許諾を得ずに行えると規定。検索事業者は日本国内にサーバを置けるようになる。

　海賊版DVDなどをネットオークションに出品する行為を禁止する規定も設けた一方、美術品などをオークションに出品する際の写真のネット掲載は、著作者の許諾なしでできるようにする。

　国立国会図書館に納本された書籍の電子アーカイブ化や、言語処理研究などデータ解析に必要な複製、障害者向けに文字情報を音声化／音声情報を文字化して配信する行為も、著作者の許諾なしで可能になる。

　著作者不明の著作物などを2次利用する際の「裁定制度」を使いやすくする規定も盛り込んだ。出演者の所在が分からない過去のテレビ番組などをネット配信する際の権利処理が簡易になる。

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東京都千代田区、帰宅困難者の避難先にホテルニューオータニ

　東京都千代田区は19日、ホテルニューオータニ（東京・千代田）など6企業・団体と震災時に救助活動で協力する協定を結ぶ。ニューオータニは家に帰れなくなる帰宅困難者に、客室や宴会場を避難場所として提供する。同区には企業や大学が集まっており、57万人の帰宅困難者の発生が予想される。民間の協力を得て、仕事や学校で区内にいる人々を含めて安全を確保する。

　ニューオータニは宿泊客や従業員の安全を確保したうえで、客室に余裕がある場合に帰宅困難者を受け入れる。交通機関が復旧するまでの避難場所に利用してもらう。

　大地震が起きたときに一斉に帰宅すると、都内の道路は「満員電車並み」に混雑するとされる。多くの人が押し合って倒れる危険があるため、混乱が収まるまで待機を促す。九段下のホテルグランドパレスも、高齢者や障害者など援護が必要な人に、ホテル施設を提供する。

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11階から水かけ、暴行容疑で男を逮捕　東京・港区

　マンション11階の自宅ベランダから路上の通行人に水を浴びせたとして、警視庁三田署は14日までに、東京都港区、無職、萩原継太郎容疑者（24）を暴行容疑で逮捕した。同署によると、同容疑者は「悪ふざけでやった」と容疑を認めているという。

　逮捕容疑は8日午後1時ごろ、ベランダの真下を歩いていた男性（41）とその息子（３）に向け、容量45リットルのバケツに入った水を浴びせた疑い。親子は水にぬれたが、けがはなかった。

　同署によると、今年2月以降、同様の被害の届け出が計5件あり、路上に水を落とす2人組の男が目撃されていた。同署は同容疑者の知人の男（25）も関与したとみて調べている。(14:01)

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国際決済銀行：中国など７カ国、銀行監督委に新規加盟

　国際決済銀行（ＢＩＳ）のバーゼル銀行監督委員会は１３日、中国やインド、ブラジルなど７カ国の新規加盟を認めたと発表した。メンバーを拡充して、同委員会が手掛ける金融機関の自己資本比率規制などを世界規模で浸透させる狙い。

　４月の第２回金融サミットでは、２０カ国・地域（Ｇ２０）を中心に世界規模で金融規制を強化することが課題。国際通貨基金（ＩＭＦ）と日米欧の金融監督当局などで構成する金融安定化フォーラム（ＦＳＦ）も１２日、中国など１２カ国の加盟を認めた。（共同）

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中川前財務相「警報鳴ってない」　バチカン報道に反論

2009年3月14日11時7分

　自民党の中川昭一前財務相は１４日放映の朝日ニュースターの番組で、イタリアでの「もうろう会見」後に観光したバチカン博物館で立ち入り制限区域に入ったことなどを伝えた報道について「全く警報も鳴っていないし、私に対しての注意もなければ、お酒のにおいなんか全くしていない」と反論した。

　中川氏は「念願のバチカン美術館に１時間半ぐらいお邪魔をし、つつがなく終わったと思っていた」と説明。帰国後、バチカン関係者に確認したとして、中川氏は「バチカンの方が、答えたことと全然違う報道になっていると当惑している。直接電話でも何回も話したし、正式にお手紙もいただいている」と語った。

　一方、もうろう会見については「政府・与党に迷惑をかけたという気持ちは、どういう誤報や意図的報道があろうと責任は感じている」と釈明した。

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「バチカンで警報機鳴らしてない」　中川前財務相が反論
2009.3.14 11:13
このニュースのトピックス：自民党
中川昭一前財務相中川昭一前財務相

　自民党の中川昭一前財務相は１４日朝の民放ＣＳ放送番組で、ローマでの先進７カ国財務相・中央銀行総裁会議（Ｇ７）での「もうろう会見」後に視察したバチカン博物館で、立ち入り禁止区域に入って警報機を鳴らすなどの失態をしたとの報道について「警報器も鳴っていないし、私に対する注意もなかった。同行した神父さんから、お酒のにおいはしていなかったと手紙をもらっている」と述べ、一部は誤りと主張した。

　中川氏は「もうろう会見」については「途中まではきちんとした対応をしたと記憶するが、記者とのやりとりが同席した白川方明日銀総裁に移る中で緊張感の糸が切れ、文字通りもうろうとしてしまった」と釈明。さらに「政府・与党に迷惑をかけた。誤報や意図的報道があっても責任は感じている」と述べた。