The bulls among us are rejoicing at the beginning of the new year. But what’s causing the Footsie to beat its all-time highs? 

From the FCA's spreadsheet of short positions required to be disclosed to it, the following details the shorted AIM shares where the position date was in 2016 (by net short position %)...

Whether you are dirt poor in Africa or pampered by the European welfare state, it does not matter. What matters for the positive development of the human spirit is an expectation that next year will be better than the current one. If that belief is taken from you, then you will most certainly force real change on the system as you feel there is little to lose. The fed-induced bubble has been fun for debt-thirsty Americans (and most developed economies) willing to take on any amount of debt as so long as they can afford the monthly payments  but the inevitable unwinding is going to be equally painful.

With the L1 funding package now fully drawn, AIM-listed CloudTag has now had an awfully large amount of money, yet we are still to see a product available for it to sell. But thumbing through the RNSs of the last few months shows an incredible cashburn. Where has it all gone?

Having asked for readers tips for 2016 for the amazing prize of lunch or dinner with Tom Winnifrith (or the chance to fob it off on someone you don't like) HERE, this is the result...

I admit that i am too lazy when it comes to reading report and accounts. I should be more of a geek like Steve Moore. In today's podcast I explain why my sloth is a sin and why we should all read from the back to the front. I also look at investment versus trading, Sirius (SXX) vs Cloudtag (CTAG). Other companies mentioned include African Potash (AFPO), Inspirit (INSP) and Strat Aero (AERO). I am now offline as I tidy up the mess created by Oakley and the different mess created by me before the Mrs and Joshua return home.

Two RNS announcements this morning from AIM-listed CloudTag (CTAG) this morning tell us that the company has drawn down the final amount of cash under its death spiral funding deal with L1. The problem is that the dates don’t quite work. Perhaps Nomad Cairn would care to clarify (yet again)?

Living in Brooklyn in the mid eighties the adverts for Crazy Eddie were just part of life. They were famous and awful at the same time. Little did folks know that this was one mammoth fraud cooked up by Sam Antar, now a great fraud buster as you can see HERE. The TV advert below is from Christmas 1986

I am sorry if I sound a bit one track minded today but you will remember that African Potash (AFPO) sent me a fascist lawyers letter ( c/o now three time losers against me Memery Crystal) demanding I pay it £2,000, unpublish my articles on it, never write on it again and pay it damages on top back in September 2016. Natch I declined the offer and the fraud that is Potash has been in freefall to insolvency ever since. Moral of the story: don't mess with The Sheriff of AIM. Now, I have a question for Lord Peter Hain of sleaze who chairs the company's remuneration committee.

That African Potash (AFPO) is clearly trading whilst insolvent is beyond doubt. It admits that it needs to raise $600,000 to pay its bills as they fall due but trading volumes on ISDX are often just a few hundred quid a day. It's game over. So where has all the money gone? There is a reason that the board did not want anyone seeing the annual report which finally surfaced today.

No wonder that fraud African Potash (AFPO) did not want anyone reading its accounts which have finally arrived six days after they were signed off. It is a gold mine for anoraks like me. Let us now turn to page 45 and note 21, related party transactions of which there are many. But I refer to the third such transaction which involves CEO lyin' Chris Cleverley.

I am yet to get an explanation from Peterhouse Corporate Finance, the advisor to ISDX and (pro tem) AIM listed fraud African Potash (AFPO) as to why accounts for the year to June 30 were signed off on 28 December but not released until 3 hours and 48 minutes after the stockmarket closed for a three day New Year break on 30 December. This is surely a breach of ISDX rules and it shows, again, that the fraudsters are prize rotters. Why is Peterhouse not resigning NOW? But it gets worse, the actual, annual report was promised by 31 December but has only this morning appeared on the company's ramptastic website. Why the delay? How about not wishing to admit to damning comments from auditors RSM Tenon which show that this company is toast? The auditor does not mince its words.

With the oil price rising nicely, it’s a reasonable time to look at a company which always reminds me of that famous frog in Beatrix Potter. You remember Jeremy Fisher? Well, today’s company is also involved in water: James Fisher (FSJ), a marine engineering giant with interests in the oil and gas world.

Since Christmas Even the various authors on the ShareProphets website have been serving up at least 1 share tip for 2017 every single day. There are blue chips, small caps, buys and sells. And of course we also have our readers share tip prize contest for 2017 where the deadline to enter is midnight and where you can enter HERE. But what did our writers tip. As we prepare for the stockmarket to reopen on Tuesday here is a full recap:

Looking at the performance of many oil producers over the past few months you could easily be forgiven for thinking that their problems are over and all is rosy within the sector once more.

I am watching high quality TV like Midsomer Murders as the Mrs is away. I am bombarded with adverts for online fashion and holiday booking and am terribly confused - I need health guru Paul Scott to help explain what is going on as something is just not right. Then I look at when the criminal gangs at Quindell (QPP), Globo (GBO) and Worthington (WRN) will face justice. At least one might be in 2017. And I ask why Cloudtag (CTAG) morons want to send cash to a convicted criminal who appears to be living in a £3 million house despite BOTH he and his wife going through bankruptcty. It's all very odd.

Once again we will have a competition and once again the prize is a meal with myself. If you dislike me you can fob that meal off on someone else. All you need to do before midnight on January 2nd is to post in the comments section below your stock to buy and your stock to sell. Steve Moore will monitor and report back monthly on how the competition fares. He will also be announcing the 2016 winner on 3rd January. Good luck all and especially, should they enter, to our favourite semi naked twins Hayley & Kate Whittaker pictured below.

Following positive results at the start of December, shares in Character Group (CCT) went on to exceed 530p. However, following news of director share sales they slid to a 495p offer price at which point in December we tipped them to our readers on the Nifty Fifty website we run with Lucian Miers. The shares are now 510p and still a buy.

Telit Communications (TCM) is the most heavily shorted stock on AIM but its share price has proved incredibly resilient. At 275p it is almost up at 2016 year highs and the company is capitalised at £317 million. But you simply cannot defy gravity forever and, as a sell, it is my next share tip of the year.

There are so many radically extreme events that are happening, or will likely happen soon in the world economy, we have to be very careful. In Jeff Berwick’s 20+ years of market investments, he sees this as the most difficult time for investors. He suggests getting a lot of your money out of the markets by holding precious metals, other hard assets, and bitcoin.