Page 10 Brink's Highlights Held at the Antwerp Zoo, 250 customers attended the Brink's-sponsored customer event. Activities included opening and welcoming remarks from Maxime Vanden Daele, managing director, Brink's Belgium, and Oded Hadani, general manager, Brink's Global Services in Antwerp. The event included a pre-sentation of the Brink's 150th anniversary video, and closing com-ments from President, Chairman and CEO of The Brink's Company, Michael Dan, demonstrated the importance of quality customer service and Brink's commitment to providing the best solution for our customers' business needs. The customers that attended represent the large diamond and jewelry companies in the area, as well as banking partners, retailers and airline represen-tatives. The event was well received and together with the Belgian management, the worldwide management and our customers we were able to benefit from great networking and a successful evening. Appreciation in Antwerp Brink's Global Services ( BGS) recently hosted a worldwide meeting in Antwerp, Belgium, the diamond capital of the world, and to celebrate Brink's 150th anniversary. Additionally, both BGS and Brink's domestic management were in attendance in order to share best practices, leverage information throughout the organization. Customer Appreciation " The customers that attended represent the large diamond and jewelry companies in the area"

July 2009 | The Brink's Journal | Page 11 Brink's Global News " This year's declines are hitting both the top and bottom lines of luxury goods companies," said the study's author Claudia D'Arpizio, a Bain partner and luxury goods expert based in Milan. " Luxury shoppers are spending less, traveling less and feeling less confident. Luxury goods producers are also feeling the additional squeeze of intense pricing pressure and markdowns from retailers and higher- end department stores." Bain estimates a 15 percent decline in luxury goods sales in the Americas and 10 percent declines in Europe and Japan, areas that account for more than 80 percent of worldwide sales. Smaller luxury markets show more promise, according to Bain, with projected growth of 7 percent in China and 2 percent in the Middle East, but these gains will provide only a small offset against steep declines in major markets. Among the major luxury product categories, apparel will be hit the hardest, declining by 15 percent. Jewelry and watches will decline by 12 percent, while leather goods, shoes and accessories will decline by 10 percent. Luxury cosmetics and fragrances will be the most resilient categories in 2009. The study also reveals a trend among luxury shoppers to switch to lower- price- point items while still remaining loyal to top- of- mind brands. " One of the biggest changes we've seen in consumers is that ' price' and ' luxury' are no longer synonymous," D'Arpizio said. Other findings of the study include: -- Consumers who are newly entering the luxury market, called " accessible luxury" consumers, are purchasing items at the lower end of brands' product lines. -- The most affluent, or " absolute," luxury shoppers have begun to focus more on the intrinsic quality of materials and the durability of luxury items instead of on fashion content. -- Consumers who value the dream offered by luxury brands, called " aspirational" consumers, are increasingly motivated by service and in- store events as much as by merchandise. -- Consumers are gravitating to more dis-creet products, preferring understatement in what they buy and how they shop in luxury stores. -- Many shoppers across all luxury segments now wait for deeper discounts at the end of the season, or seek out discounts at department stores and outlets. Bain's analysis also shows a long- term trend of continued growth in the number of luxury consumers in new emerging segments, including: -- Newly affluent consumers, especially working women. -- Men who are more willing to pamper themselves. -- Younger generations with new tastes and styles. " Changing values and consumer habits are creating tremendous opportunities for brands to win new customers and strengthen their relationships with existing ones," D'Arpizio said. " While today's economic turbulence is requiring a hard look at costs, luxury goods producers would be wise to also keep an eye on the future." New bank notes to come into circulation in Kyrgyzstan from July, 2009 New 20, 50 and 100 soms bank notes will come into circulation in Kyrgyzstan from July 1, 2009, National Bank of Kyrgyz Republic reported. According to assistant president of the Kyrgyz National Bank Zair Chokoev, newly issued banknotes are the fourth series presented. The previous were issued over eight years ago, the National Bank said. " We retained style in our bank notes but tried to make them more convenient. Notes of the third series were too large and inconvenient to use. And we decided to reduce their size," Zair Chokoev said. New bank notes will have all the main attributes of Kyrgyz money. However there are some changes in design. The new 20 soms note will have image of Tash- Tabat and the reverse side of the 100 som bill will have a picture of Toktogul Hydropower Station. Notes will have new protection elements-three dimensional watermark, latent images and holographic strip. Design of new bills was worked out by Kyrgyz painters. According to Chokoev, notes of different value should substantially differ from each other in size and color. " Money is reflection of our history, development of our economy," he said. the new bills will gradually replace notes of the third issue. Study: Luxury market to start stabilizing in 3Q The luxury goods market faces a 15- 20 percent decline during the first two quarters of 2009, decreasing from $ 219.81 billion in 2008 to about $ 197.82 billion, according to the latest study from global business consulting firm Bain and Co. The study, a semi- annual update to Bain's " Luxury Goods Worldwide Market" study, seventh edition, also predicts that the global luxury market will begin stabilizing in the second half of the year, resulting in a net decline of 10 percent for 2009 overall. " New 20 soms note will have image of Tash- Tabat"