Down from more than 100p little more than a year ago, though, at 68p, around 60% ahead of levels throughout most of June, shares in self-described “world leader in the development and manufacture of cadmium-free quantum dots and other nanomaterials”, Nanoco (NANO) are currently slightly lower on the back of a “Change of Adviser” announcement...

Commenting on an AGM update in May from packaging company Robinson plc (RBN), I concluded, with the shares at 155p, that I’d tread cautiously with it looking that the first half year performance at least wasn’t going to be pretty. The following updates, with the shares currently down to 145p, on the results announcement…

Hello Share Pitchers. Some interesting plays can be in the field of new technology which tends to take a back seat. I’m not talking about high profile improvements in mobile phones and computers, but the grey areas, like helping firms do their admin work, such as billing, more efficiently. A company which really has a big market to go at here is Smart Metering Systems (SMS). It owns and supplies new-fangled, money-saving electricity and gas meters. A million of them, to be exact.

Shares in Newmark Security (NWT) are on the recovery track, up 16% today to 2p following publication of the company’s annual results. I previously thought these offered good odds at 3p before a profit warning saw them cut down to 1.75p in July.

I am almost getting bored of this but to see poltroons get all their facts wrong and delight in their own stupidity gives me a vague feeling of superiority. Meanwhile I explain the latest farce that is entertaining various morons on twitter. I then look at Xtract Resources (XTR) and also, in detail, Rose Petroleum (ROSE). 

It was a huge disappointment for me that Craven House Capital (CRV) didn’t proceed with its move to the Specialist Fund segment of the Main Market as I was looking forward to the prospectus providing an update on the investments. Never mind, I thought I’d carry out my own investigation and made a shocking discovery.

Back on 15 June Highland Natural Resources (HNR) announced what was in essence a covert placing with a spiv share flipper. It was dressed up as something rather different but the failure of that spiv to issue a TR1 shows this laughable pretence up for what it is.

Okay that is the view of house broker VSA so it is not exactly impartial. But CEO Tony Manini is a good guy and today's news from Asiamet Resources (ARS) was encouraging so over to VSA.

Shares in Haike Chemicals (HAIK) have more than trebled since the spring but do not get suckered in as this is almost certaintly just another common or garden AIM listed China Norfolk. I am grateful to a correspondent in China who writes:

If only to tease my pal Lucian Miers who was short of Sirius Minerals (SXX) and cannot have prospered as a result I'm delighted to bring you the note published today after yesterday's interims. Shore is a corporate advisor to Sirius so the research cannot be considered utterly impartial but so far it is Shore Cap 5 Lucian Miers nil. Shore opines:

An absurd non-news RNS from Kibo Mining (KIBO) this morning looks strange but all becomes clear when one considers the consequences of the gratuitous, greedy deal with Beaufort and Sanderson that I highlighted at the start of the month HERE.

Provider of innovation software and related professional services to large and medium-sized enterprises, Imaginatik (IMTK) has announced results for its year ended 31st March 2016 and states it is “pleased with the growth achieved in the year and the underlying progress within the business”. The shares are though currently a further more than 6.5% lower, at 1.75p. Hmmm…

Following on from my earlier piece HERE celebrating the fact that Oli Fattal was back in the property game, putting his torrid time at Teathers Financial behind him, Etaireia Investments (ETIP), has announced yet another cosy connected deal between Etaireia, Baron Bloom and Oli Fattal……although clearly not everyone’s happy about it!

Not a great surprise for any seasoned observer but yet another disappointing RNS from Xtract Resources (XTR) this morning. Surely it is time now for Jan Nelson to hang up his mining helmet and head off into the sunset….well, to a new role at MTI anyway.

Boy am I kicking myself for not buying a few more gold shares a few months ago. But is it too late. That is the question asked by the world's best known mining investor, Sprott.

From Gary Newman, Nigel Somerville, Steve Moore and myself there are 14 new investment ideas in the July UK Investor Magazine which is out now. I discuss the spirit of insurgency which caused Brexit and which is powering Donald Trump to the White House and its long term implications as well as the Global Recession which will hit the UK soon and it is nothing to do with Brexit! That and much more is free to read now just click on the link below.

Automotive and commercial vehicle-focused iron casting and machining company, Castings (CGS) has updated that “our plan to fill the profit gap created by the ending of a major machining contract remains on course with improvements still expected from 2017/18”, though now also that “we have seen a softening in demand from our main customers since the statement in the Chairman's report in June”. Hmmm...

A leading burner of cash (Oops, sorry, “leading payment network for cross-border payments”), Earthport (EPO) “is pleased to provide an unaudited trading update for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2016”. Hmmm…

Hello Share Swiggers. If you have shares in producing oil firms you might want to consider hanging onto them. And if you have spare cash you might research a few likely companies with a view to a bit more investment. The reason is that the price of Brent crude oil is going up again. It is tickling $50 a barrel as I write. It was there a few months ago when the price level caused some excitement. Quite a few oil companies nudged up on the news, including Shell (RDSA) and BP (BP.).

I’ve argued previously that H&T (HAT) was a great way to buy into a classic financial business with sound management and the added bonus of a positive gold price correlation. This morning, the company announced interim results which will see me continuing to hold on to my position.