Last letter from Titanic sells for $200,000

LONDON: The last letter known to have been written on board the Titanic sold at auction in Britain for £119,000 ($200,000, 145,000 euros) on Saturday.

The letter was written by second class passenger Esther Hart just hours before the doomed ocean liner sank.

The price tag paid by an unknown bidder breaks the previous record for a Titanic-related letter, which had stood at £94,000, according to the auctioneers.

Titanic sank on its maiden voyage with the loss of more than 1,500 lives. It struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic while crossing from Southampton to New York, sinking below the waves in the early hours of Monday, April 15, 1912.

Emigrating to Canada, Hart and her daughter Eva made it into the Titanic lifeboats and were rescued by HMS Carpathia, but her husband Benjamin was among the dead.

The letter, written on Titanic stationery and dated the Sunday afternoon before the sinking, was due to be delivered to Hart´s mother back in Britain, upon the ship´s return to Southampton.

Hart later found it in a pocket of her husband´s coat, which she had with her.

The letter, headed "On board R. M. S. ´Titanic´", comes complete with an envelope embossed with the White Star Line flag.

"My Dear ones all," Hart wrote. "As you see it is Sunday afternoon and we are resting in the library after luncheon. I was very bad all day yesterday could not eat or drink and sick all the while, but today I have got over it."

She described going to a church service with her daughter and the voyage so far.

"Tho they say this Ship does not roll on account of its size. Any how it rolls enough for me, I shall never forget it. It is very nice weather but awfully windy and cold. They say we may get into New York Tuesday night but we are really due early Wednesday morning, shall write as soon as we get there."

"The importance of this legendary item cannot be overstated," said Andrew Aldridge, from Henry Aldridge and Son Auctioneers in Devizes, southwest England, which sold the letter.

It is "the only known surviving example of its type to have been written on that fateful day, surviving the sinking, and having belonged to such a well-known survivor," he said.

"The letter and envelope are in remarkable condition, with an impeccable provenance, and they represent a truly unique opportunity to own the finest example of its genre in existence. It is quite simply the jewel in the crown of Titanic manuscript ephemera." (AFP)

Pakistan sells $2 bn bonds in world market

 

ISLAMABAD: After seven years, Pakistan made a historic return to the international bond market with a US dollar denominated dual tranche offering, aggregating $2 billion, raising $1 billion each in five-year and 10-year terms.
The transaction represents the largest-ever international bond offering by Pakistan, the Ministry of Finance spokesman disclosed on Wednesday.A source said it was heavily over-subscribed with the offering ranging between $5 to $7 billion but only $2 billion was accepted.

The spokesman said that against the initial expectations of raising $500 million, the investor response was overwhelmingly strong and the order-books were oversubscribed across the two tranches, consisting of over 400 orders from high quality investors.

The five-year bonds were distributed across all major geographic regions: 59pc in the US, 19pc in the UK, 10pc in Europe, 10pc in Asia and 2pc in others. Fund managers took 84pc of the five-year issue, banks 8pc, hedge funds 7pc, insurance company/ pension funds 1pc.

The 10-year bonds were distributed as: 61pc in the US, 21pc in the UK, 12pc in Europe, 5pc in Asia and the Middle East and 1pc in other regions. Fund managers took 86pc of the 10-year issue, hedge funds 9pc, banks 4pc, insurance company/ pension funds 1pc.

The Government of Pakistan conducted extensive global roadshows with two teams covering key financial centres. A team headed by the finance minister visited Dubai, London and New York and another team headed by the finance secretary visited Singapore, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston. The Pakistan government delegations met directly with a cross-section of several institutional fixed-income investors during the four days of roadshows. The teams updated the investors on the recent trends in the Pakistani economy, the government’s reforms agenda and key priorities.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has expressed his appreciation at the return of Pakistan to the international bond market and congratulated the finance minister and his economic team for attaining another milestone, says a press release.

The premier stated that re-emergence of Pakistan in the international market showed that the prudent and focused economic policies of the government were now proving successful. He added that this success also reflected the confidence of the international economic forces and institutions in the economic stability and strength of Pakistan.

He said it also proved that the economic wisdom and acumen of the government had finally won the confidence of international investors. The prime minister further added that achieving economic independence and progression was his government’s top priority and with current successes, the way ahead was clear, which would lead to prosperity and development of the country.

Reuters adds: Pakistan marketed $1 billion of five-year notes at a yield of 7.25 percent and $1 billion of 10-year securities at 8.25 percent, said an official requesting not to be named as the figures would not be officially released until today (Thursday).