Companies can afford to payhigher dividends

Companies like Vodafone can now afford to double their yield. When asked to do so at a recent meeting, they did not reject the idea as they would have in the past

The past three years have been a torrid time for UK investors after the FTSE All-Share Index peaked in September 2000. The period leading up to this, encompassing the technology boom, had been both an exciting and rewarding time for investors. Since then equity investors have experienced the heaviest losses for a generation which, at their lowest point, saw share prices fall to half peak levels. It is unsurprising in such market conditions investors sought a higher level of security and lower volatility than the market as a whole. Some have found it by excluding equities entirely and buyi...