Legal troubles

How has 2003 been for you so far? Cote: It's definitely improving. The first half of the year was very difficult for everyone. Importantly due to SARS, but also there was the war in Iraq, which created uncertainty. In China, the change of government in March delayed approvals in certain areas. In Hong Kong there were revisions to the listing rules, which also slowed down the deal process. It was a "perfect storm" of overlapping but unrelated events, which all seem to be behind us now…