2009 Annual Report - CRH

22. Liquid Investments and Cash and Cash Equivalents
Liquid investments and cash and cash equivalents balances are spread across a wide number of highly-rated financial
institutions with no material concentrations in credit or liquidity risk.
Liquid investments
Liquid investments comprise short-term deposits and current asset investments which are held as readily disposable stores
of value and include investments in government gilts and commercial paper and deposits of less than one year in duration.
The maturity of these investments falls outside the three months timeframe for classification as cash and cash equivalents
under IAS 7 Cash Flow Statements, and accordingly, the related balances have been separately reported in the Consolidated
Balance Sheet and have been categorised as either “held-for-trading” or “loans and receivables” in accordance with IAS 39
Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement in the table below. The credit risk attaching to these items is
documented in note 21.
94 CRH
2009 2008
€m €m
Held-for-trading (fair value through profit or loss) 62 127
Loans and receivables 4 1
Total 66 128
Cash and cash equivalents
In accordance with IAS 7, cash and cash equivalents comprise cash balances held for the purposes of meeting short-term
cash commitments and investments which are readily convertible to a known amount of cash and are subject to an
insignificant risk of change in value. Where investments are categorised as cash equivalents, the related balances have a
maturity of three months or less from the date of investment. Bank overdrafts are included within current interest-bearing
loans and borrowings in the Consolidated Balance Sheet.
Cash and cash equivalents are reported at fair value and are analysed as follows:
2009 2008
€m €m
Cash at bank and in hand 406 483
Investments (short-term deposits) 966 316
Included in Consolidated Balance Sheet and Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 1,372 799
Cash at bank earns interest at floating rates based on daily deposit bank rates. Short-term deposits are made for varying
periods of between one day and three months depending on the immediate cash requirements of the Group, and earn
interest at the respective short-term deposit rates.