A round-up of other business news in brief...

Ballymana posts profits of 7.5m

Pretax profits at the company behind McCormick Macnaughton, owner of the Caterpillar machinery brand in Ireland, rose 4 per cent to €7.5 million in 2007, according to accounts that have just become publicly available.

Turnover at Ballymana Holdings, which is owned by Malcolm Macnaughton, jumped 36 per cent to €190.6 million. Operating profits declined 17 per cent to €8 million. The firm enjoyed a gain of €2.7 million from the sale of a subsidiary, McCormick Macnaughton Power Systems, now renamed Energyst Solutions.

The company, based on the Naas Road in Dublin, paid dividends of €364,000 during the year and had retained profits of €28.9 million at the end of 2007.

Operating profits up at Magellan Aviation

Shannon-based aircraft engine leasing firm Magellan Aviation Services Ltd last year increased its operating profits by 15 per cent to $3.6 million (€2.5 million), writes Gordon Deegan.

One of a cluster of aircraft-leasing firms in Shannon, the French-owned Magellan Aviation Services saw sales rise by 26 per cent to $23 million in 2008, according to accounts filed recently. However, pretax profits slipped 2 per cent to $2.36 million due to almost a doubling of interest charges last year of $1.2 million.

In the accounts, the company's directors state: "The company operates in a niche sector of the aviation industry and this sector performed well through 2008, reflecting the improvement in the performance of the industry as a whole over the past three years."

Gartmore buying into Irish banks

Gervais Williams, the investment adviser who oversees about £800 million (€930 million) at British firm Gartmore, says he is buying shares in Irish banks and smaller technology companies as falling stock prices make them a bargain.

Gartmore has been buying shares in Bank of Ireland, Allied Irish Banks and Irish Life Permanent since the beginning of the year as Irish bank stocks have bounced back from a low in early March, increasing seven-fold. “The reason they’re attractive is because they’ve come down such a long way,” Mr Williams said. “They’re still trading at only about 20 per cent of their asset value.”

Bank of Ireland has risen 142 per cent this year, while ILP has climbed 128 per cent compared with AIB’s increase of 17 per cent. – (Bloomberg)

Office rental prices high in Dublin

The cost of renting office space in Dublin remains among the most expensive in the world, a new survey has found. The data, compiled by CB Richard Ellis, found that occupancy costs in the capital are 10th most expensive, coming in just behind London, Paris and Dubai.

The most expensive rents are found in the inner central district in Tokyo, along with London’s West End, Moscow and the central business district in Hong Kong.

However, there was some evidence of lower costs, with Dublin recording a 12 per cent fall in rents over 12 months.

Etihad to hold open day in Dublin

The national airline of the United Arab Emirates, Etihad Airways, will hold an open day tomorrow in Dublin’s Burlington Hotel with the aim of filling 50 permanent positions. Ireland was chosen because of its “highly skilled and knowledge-based” workforce.

The positions will be based in Abu Dhabi, and range from licensed aircraft engineers and maintenance planning engineers to cabin crew and food and beverage managers.

Interested individuals who cannot attend the open day can submit their CV by e-mailing careers@etihad.ae