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Shaftesbury sees Olympic boost
Real estate investment trust Shaftesbury, the owner of over 500 restaurants, shops and bars in London’s West End, said next year’s London Olympic Games would drive up rental income and dividends. The company said improvements to public areas and transport links in the Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus areas of the city would increase visitor numbers to its 1.6m square foot estate, where it said trading was already “very healthy”. Finance director Brian Bickell will become chief executive on 1 October and his replacement will probably be an external appointment.