A NICE LITTLE EARNER

"All over America demand for firearms and ammunition is rising amid concerns that rising unemployment, which passed 10 per cent this month, will lead inexorably to higher rates of crime. ... Smith & Wesson is expecting sales to rise by 30% to $102 million (£61 million) in the first quarter of next financial year, after growing by more than 13 per cent this year to $335 million. At Strum and Ruger, sales for the third quarter hit $71.2 million, up 70 per cent from the same period last year. At Glock, the leader in law enforcement markets, pistol sales rose by 71 per cent in the first quarter of the financial year in 2009 in comparison with the same period last year."  (Times, 16 November) RD