Good morning / afternoon / evening, everyone.
The close period will begin on 1 January 2014 and will run until the announcement of the Group's Full Year 2013 Results on Monday, 24 February 2013.
As usual during this time, we should not under any circumstances issue guidance to external parties on new aspects of business strategy, or the financial or operational performance of any business unit.
This does not mean that interviews or press releases are proscribed, simply that care must be taken to ensure that no forward-looking information is revealed that might allow media, analysts or investors to predict results, make significant updates to existing forecasts, or form new judgements/insights on strategy.
If you are in any doubt about what can and cannot be said, please let me or Karen Ng know, or contact Patrick Humphris on +44 (0) 20 7992 1631.
Please forward this note on to colleagues in your own regions or business, where applicable.
Kind regards and wishing you all a Happy, Prosperous and Healthy New Year,