Hello, Share Birdies. There’s been rather a neat jump in the oil price, with it continuing an upward march since the new vaccines hit the scene. The Footsie tracks the oil price, so it’s good news all round. The only snag is that prices at the petrol pumps have started to hit their normal high levels. Time to think about investing in Royal Dutch Shell (RDSA) I fancy…

We review monthly the performance of the shorted AIM shares as at the start of each year. For 2020 the final review is HERE and, from the FCA’s spreadsheet of short positions required to be disclosed to it, we now have the shorted AIM shares as at the start of 2021 (on the same basis as our weekly table of shorted AIM shares, though here those in bold remain from 2020)…

I start with the 12 day of Christmas, what it means and what will happen here. Then it is on to events in Georgia, gold & the US economy. Then in today’s bout of market madness I look at Bidstack (BIDS), Argo Blockchain (ARB), Online Blockchain (OBC) and at Zenith Energy (ZEN).

A “Trading Update” from ‘logistics, e-fulfilment and returns management services’ company Clipper Logistics (CLG) includes “November and December, revenues in its logistics business were 50.0% higher than in the corresponding period of the prior year, with strong growth in both e-commerce related activities and non e-fulfilment services”. What does a share price currently up to 600p discount?…

The Financial reporting Council has today released the report below, running to almost 300 pages into the crooked accounts of Autonomy and the behaviour of Deloitte and the two audit partners Mr Richard Knights and Mr Nigel Mercer. The key takeaway here is that abetting white collar crime DOES pay.

A “Trading and business update” from ‘LiveData’ technology company WANdisco (WAND) emphasises that it “expects to report preliminary revenue for FY20 of at least $10.5m” and that an “expanding new business pipeline supports board expectations for FY21”… but what are those expectations and with revenue, of course, vanity, what does the bottom-line look like?…

At what point will the Government and MPs wake up to how useless the FCA is? I first warned a leading figure, Sir George Young (now Lord Young), that it was asleep at the wheel – with regard to the £3 billion Quindell fraud – back in 2013. The complacent old fool assured his errant step-nephew and second cousin that the regulator knew what it was doing and I had no need to do anything more.  Of course it did not. Belatedly, MPs are waking up to the failings of the FCA with regard to London & Capital Finance but there have been a stream of other mini-bond disasters where I have issued explicit warnings over two years and the FCA has done BUGGER ALL to stop them from continuing to raise funds. Some have already gone tits up so losing vulnerable savers hundreds of millions of pounds. Others are car crashes in waiting. I am so angry at the FCA for letting down those who are most vulnerable.

Gary Newman got much grief in times gone by for warning folks about this dog. Today, I imagine he will be enjoying extra ouzo with his fishcakes as the shares were suspended from AIM as the one month notice period of, now, former Nomad Strand Hanson came to a close. But what next?

On 22nd December Microsaic Systems (MSYS) announced that it had appointed KRE Corporate Recovery “to explore other remaining options to maximise value for creditors and potentially other stakeholders”. It was “other remaining options” as a formal sale process had failed – and the shares fell back. However, they have recently significantly recovered and now a further statement from the company has been required…

Hello, Share Pickers. There are a couple of reasons why I return to Creightons (CRL) at the moment. Firstly, I feel a duty to inform you if a share I feature continues to move ahead. And Creightons is still benefitting from the surge in coronavirus…

We review monthly the performance of the top shorted London-listed shares as at the start of each year. For 2020 the final review is HERE and, from the FCA’s spreadsheet of short positions required to be disclosed to it, we now have the top shorted London-listed shares as at the start of 2021 (those in bold remain from 2020)…

I am almost speechless with rage at Bonkers Boris’ latest lockdown. There is a huge debate to be had, with professors, (academic) doctors, journalists and others all with an alternative view to the one peddled by Bonkers. But they will not be heard, are junked and now TalkRadio has been removed from Youtube in an outrageous act of censorship and denial of free speech. There ARE hard questions which need to be answered. George Orwell wrote 1984 as a warning, not a blueprint. But amid all this, and all the uncertainty caused by yet another lockdown (if at first you don’t succeed, defy logic and try again) something is definitely turning my way..

A “Trading, OEM Pipeline & Operations Update” announcement from manufacturer of carbon fibre reinforced ceramic automotive brake discs Surface Transforms (SCE) – and the shares currently 4% higher at 53p, capitalising the company at over £82 million. Good news then?…

I start with the non-financial GroupThink but explain how this is relevant to three shares: Remote Monitored Systems (RMS), Optibiotix (OPTI), and Cineworld (CINE). And I outline why two of the three are screaming sells and one a screaming buy. Guess which? I refer to this article I penned earlier on how dissent from GroupThink is being stifled.

A “Director dealing”-titled announcement from wireless communication technology company CyanConnode (CYAN) today – and the shares currently at 9p, more than 15% higher. A very significant share purchase from a director then?…

In its 25 year history, Eden Research (EDEN) has only ever reported one six month period when it made a profit. And that was down to a Panama Pump accounting fraud involving Terpenetech. But today its shares are racing ahead thanks to an endorsement from the London Stock Exchange (LSE). I despair and ponder retirement.

It is good to be back writing a few thoughts on UK stocks. Another time I will update some views on a few names such as GVC, which renamed itself Entain (ENT) back in December. What a last few months for it, and the Americans now want to buy it. I also need to do an update on my old pal DS Smith (SMDS), which performed very strongly whilst I was not watching the markets. And on a whole load of other favourites I will update over the next month or two. I am going to leave Next (NXT) to the experts, as an 8% odd romp in the share price has pushed it to crazy levels, and focus here on Wm Morrison (MRW) instead…

Analyst and devout Christian Peter Grandich called the bottom in gold in 2018. At that time, it was a very contrarian trade, as most investors had given up. The lack of exploration, coupled with the massive money printing, made this a relatively easy decision. He feels bullion may still have a way to run but mining equities will go even further. He expects a new period of M&A and interest from large funds.

Having asked for readers tips for 2021 for the prize of 1/2 litre of Tom Winnifrith’s Greek Hovel olive oil (2021 harvest), the following are the entrants (to be eligible needed to have selected, on a once per username basis, a buy & sell pick from the LSE or AIM casino and the stocks not to have been suspended at the commencement of 2021)…

Hello, Share Teasers. I still stand by my educated guess that house prices will continue to rise and that demand for new homes will increase. This should give estate agents a boost. So my choice today is Belvoir Group (BLV).