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As any regular readers will be aware, Horizonte Minerals (HZM) has been a favourite of mine for several years now and is edging ever closer to finally reaching production.

If you are younger than me you probably cannot remember Bre-X. It was a monster scam.  Asset manager Warren Irwin was not only around at the time but he visited the site and now tells the tale. 

Kefi Gold & Copper (KEFI) has issued a “Significant Progress in Ethiopia”-titled announcement and the shares have currently responded up to 0.62p. They have not responded further higher (yet) since there are some short-term negatives in the announcement too, but overall there is still progress towards what we consider will be significant share price catalysts in the near-term.

As a long term holder of Horizonte Minerals (HZM) I was disappointed to see the news that the company has needed to raise more capital via an equity issue, but I probably shouldn’t be too surprised.

Tertiary Minerals (TYM) has always been one of those companies that has promised a lot based on the potential of its resources in the ground, yet never seems to make much progress towards actually extracting any of them, whilst burning through cash and having to raise more at regular intervals.

Caerus Mineral Resources (CMRS) is a company that I tipped as a speculative buy when it IPO’d, and after initially performing well, the share price has since crashed.

Back in March, at the request of a ShareProphets reader, I took a look at Capital Metals (CMET) and noted that although the company and its resource didn’t really appeal to me personally, I could see some potential there if and when it reached production.

Long suffering Teathers Financial shareholders could actually be on the verge of seeing the company actually worth something again after a deal with Power Metal Resources was announced, but for me it raises a lot of questions.

Analyst, Lawrence Lepard, kicks off with a major mining fraud.

Asiamet Resources (ARS) has turned out to be my worst ever investment in a mining company, in terms of percentage loss anyway, and has been a great example of what happens if as a company you continually miss deadlines.

Finding junior mining companies that have the potential to go on to develop a large resource through to actual production, or an asset sale, is never easy and the reality is that most of these companies fail to ever achieve much other than burning through large amounts of cash over a period of years.

Asiamet Resources (ARS) is a great example of what happens to a share that the market has totally lost confidence in and how a major, company-making piece of news is likely to be needed in order to bring about any sort of change in sentiment.

It isn’t really surprising that any companies operating in the region where the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine is going on have taken a big hit to their share price since it all kicked off, but that can also present opportunities as long as you are prepared to take on the risks associated with that.

At one time I quite liked the look of Hummingbird Resources (HUM) and its gold mining operations, but unfortunately, like so many AIM listed resource stocks, its potential looked better than what it hasactually turned out to be!

Central Asia Metals (CAML) is one of those companies which I think is consistently undervalued by the market, and although it carries some degree of geo-political risk, I believe that too large a discount is applied for that.

Capital Metals (CMET) has been covered in the past on ShareProphets, both positively and negatively, and, on behalf of a reader,  Tom Winnifrith asked me to take a look and give my latest thoughts on this Sri Lankan focussed miner. You see, we do read your emails.

Hello Share Takers. You’ll have gleaned that shares in big miners have been rising this week, helping the Footsie to new 12 month highs. This old punter is wary of mining shares, knowing little about the game unlike my excellent colleague Gary Newman. But mining stocks can occasionally be very rewarding. So instead of putting lots of loot into individual firms, I spread it by relying on umbrella companies like Trident Royalties (TRR).

Now that the acquisition of Bacanora Lithium (BCN) by Gangfeng has completed, many former shareholders will be wondering whether to keep hold of the shares they were awarded in Zinnwald Lithium (ZNWD) as part of that deal.

These days I’m generally not a fan of tiny natural resources companies and tend to avoid them as they rarely attract the positive sentiment and momentum that we have seen in the past, and most will never even come close to actually extracting anything from the ground.

Political risk is always hard to gauge, and where it does start to become a potential issue for a company, it is rarely clear in advance just how much of a problem it could be. The political risk in Peru increased significantly earlier this year when left wing president Pedro Castilla came to power, especially for mining and oil companies as he had promised to heavily tax foreign companies operating there.

It looks as though Asiamet Resources (ARS) has finally landed the deal for the BKM asset that investors have been patiently waiting for, but so far the market seems unimpressed and the share price is trading lower than it was before the announcement.

Asiamet Resources (ARS) has been a very frustrating share to hold and in the past I have been less than impressed with the management, especially when it comes to the Aeturnum debacle at the start of this year.

Bacanora Lithium (BCN) is a company that I have covered a few times previously, most recently when major shareholder and joint venture partner Gangfeng made a takeover bid for it.

As rare as is it to see an AIM mining minnow with a large and potentially very valuable resource in the ground actually make it to the production stage whilst retaining ownership of all of the project, Horizonte Minerals (HZM) now looks on the verge of achieving that.

The recent share price movement on Eurasia Mining (EUA) looks even more dodgy now in light of today’s announcement of a placing, and I would be surprised if there hasn’t been some forward selling going on.

Horizonte Minerals (HZM) is a company that I’ve written about a number of times in recent years, and is also one where I’ve been patiently holding shares myself for a long time. When it comes to AIM mining stocks it is quite a rarity that they either actually make it into production, or get taken out by a larger predator prior to that stage, and for many of them the resource in the ground sounds far better than the reality of actually extracting it commercially.

I’m surprised to see Central Asia Metals (CAML) showing some share price weakness prior to the release of its interim results next week, as I’ve no reason to suspect that they will disappoint the market – in fact I would expect them to be good!

If you want to invest in London listed precious metals producers your choice of shares is fairly limited, and has become even more so in recent years following takeovers of a couple of the popular miners.

Gold and silver miners have generally performed quite poorly as of late, and certainly when you consider the prices that the metals themselves have been trading at, and Fresnillo (FRES) has certainly been no exception. That is your opportunity and here is why.

It always surprises me how impatient investors can be and how much a missed deadline can sometimes be punished, even when that event has the potential to unlock significant amounts of value, if and when it finally happens. I’ve been invested in Horizonte Minerals (HZM) for several years now and during that time have seen lots of ups and downs, including disappointment when ‘deadlines’ have been missed.

Libertarian philosopher, speculator, and author Doug Casey kicks off by suggesting paying for a University education is a misallocation of time and money to have your head pumped full of Marxist ideas.

Whilst I mostly stick to trading and investing in companies that are listed in the UK, in recent times I have started to look elsewhere for potential precious metal producers which look interesting.

I remember when I first covered Bushveld Minerals (BMN) as a buy back in 2016 at around the 2p level, prior to the completion of its asset acquisition, vanadium wasn’t a commodity that you heard mentioned much.

Copper is all the rage at the moment, and rightly so as the metal looks likely to remain strong in the coming years, with potential shortages forecast.

And now from Wales, by just 30 yards, it is my new weekly video show. This costs 99p per episode, and you can either listen to, or watch, a sparky interview with Red Rock Resources (RRR) boss Andrew Bell and then a detailed four way with myself, Chris Bailey, Gary Newman and Nigel Somerville on all things mining. Which metals are the ones to be in and why and how to play that. If you invest in mining stocks this show is for you..You can access the show HERE 

As many of you will know, I’ve never exactly been a big fan of shares in small AIM listed lithium miners and viewed most as being junk when they were being heavily promoted a few years back when the metal was suddenly in the limelight and any sort of mention of it had private investors scrambling to buy in.

Around six weeks ago I covered the IPO of a small mining company called Caerus Mineral Resources (CMRS) and noted that it looked interesting for anyone who liked these small, speculative type of plays.

Centamin (CEY) has always been one of my favourite gold producers, and although I may not be as bullish as fellow ShareProphets writer Nigel Somerville, I still expect the metal to do well over the next few years.

Private investors are often looking to buy into companies where the share price has fallen, rather than those which are near all time highs, but in some cases that is the opposite of what they should be doing!

I often see people saying that you can’t actually invest inshares in  AIM miners and the only way to play them is by trading the swings they have along the way.

Atalaya Mining (ATYM) has been a favourite of mine for a few years now, but seems to be one of those shares which you rarely see mentioned on social media and the bulletin boards. It was formerly EMED. Ring a bell?

It’s not often that I take much notice of the smallest mining companies at the lower end of AIM, but every now and again one gets my attention as being worthy of taking a look at if you want to take a bit of a punt on shares in something more speculative than the popular producers.

I recently wrote a piece on. ShareProphets suggesting that Asiamet Resources (ARS) would be carrying out a placing within the next few weeks.

Petra Diamonds (PDL) is one of those mining companies which is drowning in debt and could very easily have gone bust, had it not recently announced a restructuring with its lenders.

When it comes to investing, I’ve always gone on the basis that you should always react to new information, not necessarily in terms of buying or selling, but certainly in assessing upside potential and risks – even when that emerges soon after you’ve made a decision as to whether or not a company is worthy of investment.

Mining companies often operate in parts of the world that you definitely wouldn’t consider to be safe or politically stable, but despite that many of them operate fairly smoothly and rarely have major issues when it comes to their mines.

Just over a year ago I covered a ‘mining’ share as a speculative buy, and it was very different to the natural resources companies that I normally cover, as it was mining Bitcoin rather than any metal or other commodity.

Vast Resources (VAST) is typical of many AIM mining companies in that it has always promised a lot but failed to deliver, whilst continually raising more capital via regular equity issues.

It probably shouldn’t do, but it still sometimes amazes me at just how short a term outlook some PIs seem to take these days, especially when it comes to companies in the natural resources sector.  

There are numerous reasons why I wouldn’t run an AIM Mining company but chief among them is a terror of what you find lurking in your tent when you go out into the bush to drill. Vassilios Carellas of Arc Minerals (ARCM) sent me a photo one what his team found in one of the tents last week. This guy won’t be posting on the LSE Asylum any more. Enjoy. 

Unexpected negative events, especially geo-political ones, can present great buying opportunities at times, as the market tends to severely over-react, even when there is no immediate specific impact on a company itself. 

Greatland Gold (GGP) is a company that I’ll happily admit to having been wrong about, as were many others, and a lot has changed since I last looked at it around the time that Newmont Mining had decided to terminate its involvement. At the time, I expected that Greatland would go the way of so many other small mining companies that promised a lot and then failed to deliver, given that Newmont had decided not to exercise an option to partake in a joint venture on its Ernest Giles gold project in Australia. At the time it was extremely early days with Havieron licence area, which is now the main focus of attention and which has turned the company around…

When the market cap of a company is trading at significantly below its net asset value it would suggest that there is value in buying, but usually things aren’t as clear cut as they at first appear.

When it comes to small mining companies, lots of them appear to have a great story and if you listen to those doing calculations based on resources in the ground, most are worth billions!

Gold is all the rage at the moment and looks set to remain strong, even if we do see some pullbacks or it not advancing to the price levels that some are predicting. So, it is no surprise that there is so much focus at the moment on any company operating in the gold sector, either producing or even just early stage explorers. With such a big recent rise in the gold price, many miners have followed it upwards, so if you are only just getting into gold now, the trick is to try and find value, and if something does look cheap, to understand why it might be trading at a lower market cap than you would expect. One ShareProphets reader has recently asked me to take a look at Tanzanian gold producer Shanta Gold (SHG), as to him it seemed relatively cheap and he wondered if there was a good reason for it being so…

Regular readers here will know that I’ve been a fan of Russian gold miner Highland Gold (HGM) for quite some time and it has been my share of choice for exposure to the yellow metal, and one which I hold myself. I covered it as a buy at 227p back in late February, and then again at 222p very recently as one of my tips for the MineProphets event, so I was clearly very bullish on it and especially so given the steeply rising gold price we have seen of late…

Hello, Share Monkeys.  It’s the weekend of the Shareprophets big mining online share show. As it costs only £2.99p for access to the best mining experts in the investing business, I would urge anyone hoping to make money from one of the most exciting branches of the golden game, to part with this nominal amount to take part. As well as being an area where you could make the most money in the shortest time, it’s also, well, a minefield and you need the best info you can get.

Over the past couple of months it has generally been a good idea to avoid resource stocks unless you’re either buying for the long term or are happy to try and trade high volatility, but one metal that is showing signs of strength is copper.

Gold stocks seem to be very much on the radar at the moment, with the price of the yellow metal looking very strong against a back-drop of worldwide concerns over coronavirus and investors looking for a safe haven.

Pembridge Resources (PERE) today issued a production update for the latest quarter up to the end of 2019, and based on the figures contained within that, many are struggling to understand why the company isn’t valued more highly.

Last week AIM-listed Inspirit Energy (INSP) released results at no-one-is-watching o'clock, on Christmas Eve Eve. It seems the trick of avoiding ShareProphets scrutiny by releasing bad results the day before good days to bury bad news is spreading, for yesterday – New Year’s Eve Eve - at 4.23pm came interims from AIM-listed URU Metals (URU). Except ShareProphets was watching, always keen to highlight news that companies don’t want you to see. And oh dear, oh dear…..

The share price of SolGold (SOLG) has taken a hit in recent months as a result of weak copper prices and political unrest in Ecuador, where its largest project is located, but if you are looking for an early stage mining company that has huge potential, then this could have presented a buying opportunity.

At first glance Argo Blockchain (ARB) seems to be very different to the type of companies that I normally cover within the natural resources sector, but the actual economics of the business isn’t all that dissimilar.

Eurasia Mining (EUA) is a company that I’ve been following for the past five years or so, but during that time, other than the occasional spike, the share price has done very little, and up until a few days ago you could have bought for around the same price as when I first covered it. The share price has more than tripled in the last few days though, to a current level of around 1.9p, following news that the company has engaged two large banks to help it assess the possibility of selling its assets and basically becoming a cash shell under AIM Rule 15...

It seems to be a growing trend on the AIM market, especially with resource companies, whereby they believe that changing the name of the business will erase memories of past failings!

Central Asia Metals (CAML) is a company which I have followed for a number of years, and although the share price hasn’t seen much movement during that time, anyone who has followed my previous buy tips should still have done okay from it.

Almost a year ago I suggested that it would be a good time to consider banking at least some profit on Bushveld Minerals (BMN), but now that the share price has almost halved since then, I believe that the shares are now back in the buy zone.  Here, in detail, is why...

Gold runs in the veins of veteran financier Jamie Strauss, one of the biggest names in the London mining scene. Jamie argues that the commodity sector is steadily advancing and beginning to take advantage of machine learning and automation. Also, the financing of projects now requires a lot more due diligence as sophisticated investors and streaming companies require it. All of these changes are making the sector very exciting.

In media and in mining Frank Giustra has a Midas touch. He believes that we are on the third and final phase of the gold boom cycle that started back in 2001, and the next cycle will be the largest of these moves.

Companies which have undergone several name changes and have never managed to achieve anything in their previous incarnations always raise red flags for me, and I suspect that Power Metal Resources (POW) will follow a similar trend to many others that fall into this category.

Petra Diamonds (PDL) is a company that I covered back in March and so far I have been wrong about it having potential as a speculative investment, as the share price has just taken another big drop.  

Silver and gold mining giant Fresnillo (FRES) has always been a good leveraged play on commodity prices, and is a favourite amongst both investors and traders looking for exposure to precious metals.

It is always said that you let your winners run, but it has got to the stage with Anglo Asian Mining (AAZ) where I would be very tempted to take some money off the table and cash in if you followed my buy tip back in March...

A lot of the time there is very little that you can do to avoid bad news coming out of the blue, and even less so where the directors of the company have previously tried to make out that the situation is far more positive than the reality. That would definitely seem to be the case with African gold miner Avesoro Resources (ASO), and if anything proves that I should stick with my gut feeling when something doesn’t quite feel right about a company...

After news last week there is no doubt in my mind that Kefi Minerals (KEFI) really is very cheap. And so I present a note explianing why. Two caveats. 1. It is published by Edison which is paid to push this out so is hardly impartial. 2 The author is my old pal the convicted felon Champagne Charlie Gibson. To his credit, when not getting sozzled before driving home in his motor to go cuffing members of the working classes, Charlie does actually know a bit about mining. The note is below.

Fertiliser producer Harvest Minerals (HMI) seems to have been getting mentioned quite a bit recently and its shares are sitting at around a 12 month low, which probably means that it is going to get pushed hard in the near future, but is it a company that you should be considering taking a position in?

Avesoro Resources (ASO) is a good example of what can happen to a share where there is a forced seller and generally low liquidity in the trading of the shares.

Richard Jennings is wrong about a good few things. Very wrong. But on certain matters (cats, Greece, donating money to Rogue Bloggers for Woodlarks) he cannot be faulted. And his logic in arguing to sack the board at Argo Blockchain (ARB) is 100% correct. We will be casting FIML votes in favour of the resolution to do so and we urge all others to do the same. Over to the Align Research boss to explain why:

Diamond miners seem to be out of favour at the moment, but many experts are predicting better things to come for the market, with demand increasing and supply falling, especially when it comes to large or rare coloured stones.

If you want exposure to copper and are looking to invest in an earlier stage outfit that is already in production, then your choice of UK listed companies is actually fairly limited. The majority are either still at the exploration/development phase, or are large FTSE listed miners, and in many cases copper is just one of many metals that are being produced, with the odd exception...

I’ve been a fan of Central Asia Metals (CAML) for some time now, and although the share price isn’t much higher currently, I still see it ultimately growing into a bigger company.

Hello, Share Bunnies. To describe Prairie (PDZ) mining as speculative is to err on the mild side. Its prospects of rocketing the share price seem good, except for a dispute now in the hands of the Polish courts. Until the dispute is settled, I suppose anything might happen.

Diamond miners have performed very poorly of late, but that doesn’t mean that trend will continue indefinitely - and now could be a good time to buy with a longer term view. Petra Diamonds (PDL) is definitely one in this sector which has caught my eye lately, and is one of several diamond miners which I have kept an eye on over the years...

Trading in the shares of Cadence Minerals (KDNC) was incredibly volatile last week following two announcements by a company in which it holds an equity position. 

Gold, silver and copper are all metals that I am bullish on at the moment, so Azerbaijani miner Anglo Asian Mining (AAZ) fits the bill perfectly in covering all three of those.

I believe a good buying opportunity is currently presenting itself in the shares of Avesoro Resources (ASO) and although it may go lower in the short term, I can see decent risk versus reward here for at least a medium term trade.

The market has been slaughtering even the larger companies over any sort of disappointing results recently, but for me that further strengthens the argument to buy shares in Centamin (CEY).

I’m always very wary of investing in small mining companies, as even when the management team and the assets look decent, it is still a bit of a lottery as to whether the company will actually make it to a stage where it is making a profit and returning money to shareholders via dividends.

Hello, Share Tasters. The big miners are often a difficult investment, as a drop in commodity prices can cause catastrophe. Hopefully though, the price of commodities is currently so undervalued that this is unlikely to happen to the horrible extent of a few years ago...

All that Edenville Energy (EDL) seems to have managed to achieve over the years is to burn through cash at a rate of knots whilst failing to deliver anything for shareholders other than a steady and prolonged decrease in the share price. I can remember even back in 2010/11 when this company was being promoted as having huge potential, along with all the other rubbish that you tend to hear spouted about these small AIM resource outfits across the bulletin boards...

Oracle Power (ORCP) seems to have become popular all of a sudden and has seen its share price rise by around 80% in the past week, but as usual some on the bulletin boards seem to be claiming that it should actually be worth many multiples of its current valuation.

Investors in GCM Resources (GCM) seem to be shocked that recent news hasn’t caused the share price to rise much higher, and barring a very brief spike immediately after news of a deal landed, it has settled back to around the level that it was trading at before the RNS dropped. The news that has got everyone invested in this Bangladeshi coal miner so excited is a joint venture agreement with a huge government owned entity called PowerChina, which is involved in coal fired power plants and is a name that some will be familiar with as it also has similar deals in place with other small mining companies in various parts of Africa as well...

Often when I look at companies at the lower end of AIM I am left struggling to see why on earth anyone is buying it at the current share price.

After a strong performance during the first half of 2018, copper has been weak and is currently trading at close to its lowest levels since mid-2017. Having hit peaks of more than $7,200/t last June it is now around the $6,000/t area, and although an improvement on the $5,800/t level it started the year at, I would hardly call this slight resurgence a proper bounce just yet. But I do think that is going to come as the metal is too important to stay at these levels for long, especially in light of the fact that many analysts are forecasting a supply deficit in the coming years due to the increasing use of the metal – as I’ve mentioned in the past, electric vehicles will be a factor and use far more wiring than the cars that are currently in common use...

Asiamet Resources (ARS) is one that I have been wrong about in the past, as I wasn’t expecting the share price to drop as low as it has done, but that has been part of a more general trend amongst the AIM resource stocks that aren’t currently generating any revenue.

Gold has been showing signs of strength of late and moving forwards into 2019 I would definitely be looking to have some in your portfolio, with an equity position in a gold producer being the best option.

When investing in a company long term it is all about getting in at a good price, rather than having to buy right at the bottom of any temporary dips along the way, as long as things go to plan for the business.

A lot of AIM investors seem to view main market larger companies as being boring as you aren’t ever likely to multiply your capital overnight, but conversely it is unlikely that you will ever lose the lot either. By ignoring the larger companies, especially in the mining and oil sectors, you are potentially missing out on some very good gains, and with relatively low risk to your capital as these businesses tend to be so well diversified that any single event is unlikely to cause a complete share price collapse.

On the face of it I can see why some investors have been drawn to Cradle Arc (CRA), as it is actually producing copper and has a market cap of just £2.5 million, but there could well be good reason for its shares appearing to be cheap.

Centamin (CEY) has had a bad run of form of late, but I believe that this is just a temporary blip in its fortunes and it presents a fantastic buying opportunity for the future.

A few weeks ago I covered the fact that Bellzone Mining (BZM) looked to be in serious trouble, and following recent developments it looks in an even worse state now. This share has been a recent favourite of the pump and dump crews, as the uncertainty over its future has caused the share price to be incredibly volatile and no doubt some will have made money from these daily fluctuations. But what really amazes me is that so many PIs seem willing to buy into a share which already had a very high chance of failure, and even more so now.

It never ceases to amaze me how much of a gamble some PIs will take with their money, even when the company itself has warned that it is in real trouble and it is almost impossible to see a way out of a bad situation which would result in a higher share price.

Back in June I wrote a piece suggesting that Jangada Mines (JAN) would raise further funds at a significant discount, and at the time I was shot down by many, including some market commentators.

If AIM gave out awards for achieving little and issuing billions of shares, then Tanzanian coal miner Edenville Energy (EDL) would be high up the list to receive one!

Spanish copper miner Atalya Mining (ATYM) has seen its share price drop back recently, but then the situation has been similar on most producers in this sector and has come as a result of weakness in the commodity price rather than anything company specific.

Silver has performed very badly in recent months and has hit the lowest levels that we have seen since the start of 2016, but there are plenty of reasons why you should have some exposure to the metal in your portfolio. 

When you find a resources company that has plenty of growth potential and you like both the fundamentals and the management team behind it, then it often makes sense to build up a long term position in it over a period of time.

It’s been a tough few months for the mining sector in 2018, with the All Share Mining Index down over 10% since the beginning of the year and mining shares hitting a two-year low last week. Precious metal miners in particular have suffered a rough summer; the price of gold now sits at $1,196, down from $1304 on 1st January, while Holders of some of the larger companies in this sector – such as Fresnillo (FRES), Centamin (CEY) and Hochschild (HOC) – will have seen the losses of over 30%. It’s not all doom and gloom in the sector though: success stories can be found amongst the small-caps, with Gem Diamonds (+57% in 2018) and Atalaya Mining (+26.1%) heading the list of miners that have provided strong returns so far.

When a sector is showing weakness it can be tempting to sell up and move into something else, but often if you are in for the longer term then this is actually the time to be adding to your investment.

Hello Share Twiddlers. Despite the worries of an uncertain world, economically speaking, there have been some jolly signs recently that share prices could move ahead. I know there are warning signals out there to counter any undue optimism, but they don’t seem to be having an effect, do they?

It often pays to be wary of companies that haven’t lived up to expectations in the past, but there are exceptions to that if the company fundamentally changes, especially if conditions in the market in which it operates also improves at the same time. 

The longer you follow the lower end of the AIM market, the more you realise that big share price movements are often more a result of a concerted pump than related to actual news that has been released.

Central Asia Metals (CAML) has been a favourite of mine for some time now and with this company I think it is very much a case of letting your winners run, as I can still see plenty of upside in the coming months and years.

Centamin (CEY) has taken a big hit to its share price over the past week or so and has seen getting on for £400 million wiped off of the value of the company.

When news came on Friday that trading in the shares of Weatherly International (WTI) had been suspended and that the company was being placed into administration, unfortunately it didn’t really come as much surprise to me.

 Chaired by Brian Kinane of Riverfort this was a real clash of ideas and featured Dominic Frisby, Paul Atherley of Berkeley (BKY), Richard Poulden of Wishbone (WSBN), Peter Bird of Asiamet (ARS) and - making a very welcome return - Amanda Van Dyke, now a fund manager.

West African gold miner Avesoro Resources (ASO) hadn’t been performing as well as investors had hoped since it started production, but things finally seem to all be coming together now.

Berkeley Energia (BKY) was once one of the more popular shares on AIM, and there was plenty of interest as its share price rose steadily on speculation.

Given what is going on in the markets and world in general at the moment, it would seem silly not to have gold featuring somewhere in your portfolio.

One of ShareProphets regular readers, Wildrides, has asked me to take a look at Weatherly International (WTI), and as I do follow the mining sector quite closely, I am happy to give my thoughts on the company.

Generally, I’m wary of the reasons for companies which are already listed on other exchanges deciding that they want to be dual-listed on the AIM market. This is especially the case when it comes to ASX companies operating in the natural resources sector, as in general the track record for those hasn’t been great, with often very little of substance being achieved despite large sums being raised on AIM. There are exceptions though...

Currently it seems that the mere mention of cryptocurrency or blockchain can drive investors into a frenzy, with people thinking that the new Bitcoin is about to be born, when the actual reality is that most of these companies will ultimately fail. It seems to be a bit of a ruse that is being used at the lower end of AIM, whereby the company announces some sort of involvement in this field, knowing that it will gain some interest as a result.

Lithium has been all the rage amongst AIM investors over the past few years, but the reality is that many of the projects which people have been getting excited about will fail to ever actually produce anything.

It isn’t often that I look at shares in a FTSE100 company and can easily see a very high chance of a 25% or more gain in share price over the coming months.

The rise in shares of Lionsgold (LION) has got the attention of many, and it certainly looked as though news was leaked prior to an RNS later in the day. Having seen the share price dropping steadily of late, it suddenly surged more than 40% on much higher than normal volume. Initially it looked like just another pump, as this share has been very popular with private investors ever since its share price rose by around 500% in December and is very volatile, but then an RNS dropped informing the market that it was making a new investment, and it ended the day up nearly 90% at 4.55p on the ask.

Investors who believed all the hype surrounding Greatland Gold (GGP) received a nasty shock this week when the share price collapsed, but for many of us who have been around the market for a while it didn’t really come as much of a surprise.

I can see why holders of Tri-Star Resources (TSTR) would be less than impressed with the recent open offer, especially given the huge discount to the share price prior to that. This isn’t a company which I have really followed closely in the past, but the recent large fundraising at a 92% discount to the previous share price, and subsequent approval at the general meeting this week, got my attention.

After his (belated) return to his desk Andrew Monk of VSA Resources has sent out another big report today to those lucky enough to be on his private email list. This time it is mining stocks. Over to the Monkey... 

There was a time when Premier African Minerals (PREM) looked to have genuine potential, but in the few years since then it has consistently disappointed investors and is now trading at a fraction of the share price it once hit.

Sometimes investing takes a lot of patience, but if you are in at a fairly early stage and are prepared to hold long term, then you can reap the rewards whilst others are left wondering why they never bought any shares whilst the price was still relatively cheap.

I have been a big fan of Horizonte Minerals (HZM) for some time now, and am even more so following an acquisition announcement. The market didn’t take the news that this AIM listed mining company, with operations in Brazil, had acquired a further nickel-cobalt project particularly well - the shares down by over 6% to 4p on the ask, but I suspect that was largely as a result of an issue of equity coming at the same time, rather than a reflection of what people think of the newly acquired Vermelho project, which Horizonte now owns 100% of.

Sula Iron and Gold (SULA) has been a massive disappointment to investors in recent years, like so many other junior miners on the AIM market. It is also following a similar path to many others before it, in that it is on the verge of changing its name, as well as focussing the business in a different direction, but still within the mining sector.

Gold has been very difficult to read lately, with a lot of the swings making very little sense in the context of the events that have been driving them.

No matter how long you have been around the AIM market, there are often moves which seem to make little or no sense, especially amongst the smaller companies.

Twitter and the bulletin boards were awash with people saying how great the Blenheim Natural Resources (BNR) news was this morning, but having had a good read myself I think they may have been over-egging it somewhat!

Nickel prices have performed strongly in recent months and are currently up around 30% from the lows which they hit during the early part of the summer.

I’ve been following the Greatland Gold (GGP) story with interest, but have to admit that I remain very sceptical at this stage, especially given the rise in share price that the company has enjoyed recently.

The hardest thing for many of the smaller miners is actually making it to the production stage, and there are many that never get that far.

Regular readers here will know that I’ve not exactly been a big fan of Ferrum Crescent (FCR), but there could now be a slight glimmer of hope for anyone trapped in this serial underperformer.

With I having questioned in March 2:15pm ‘Interim Management Statement’ a cause for alarm?, mechanical and refractory engineering company Goodwin (GDWN) has now announced results for its year ended 30th April 2017…

Kaz Minerals (KAZ) is a great example of the extent that commodity prices can effect larger miners, and the recovery in copper prices has seen the share price trading at multiples of where it was just 18 months ago.

Sylvania Platinum (SLP) is a company which I’ve followed for quite some time and hold shares in myself - and I view today’s unexpected acquisition news as being positive for the company moving forwards.

Copper prices have remained volatile but continue to push higher, and if this continues it will be a very bullish signal for both producers and those looking to bring new projects online.

On the AIM market these days it seems as though many would far rather buy into the latest pump and dump on a piece of junk, than invest in a company that is actually running its business properly and making money. The problem with putting your money into junk is that at some point true value normally shines through and the resultant share price crashes can be spectacular.

Silver has been incredibly volatile this year with large swings, but it is now back at a level where I can see a good chance of a bounce coming, and that in turn offers upside on producers of the precious metal.

Shares in Jubilee Platinum (JLP) have taken a bit of a battering in recent months, but I can still see plenty of upside here on any sort of positive reversal in platinum prices, and it is also worth remembering that other platinum group metals have been more robust.

Vedanta Resources (VED) was one of my best performing shares during 2016, and after a significant pullback in the share price in recent months it is well worth considering buying back in at current levels.

Lonmin (LMI) is a company that I have followed closely for several years, but after the latest updates this week, and with platinum still looking weak, I wouldn’t be in any rush to buy.

I have been a fan of Randgold Resources (RRS) for a long time and the latest update from the company continues to support my bullish view here.

I recently wrote a piece HERE expressing my surprise that the share price of Ariana Resources (AAU) had failed to react positively to good news, so it probably shouldn’t have come as a surprise that a decent update on its resource actually resulted in the share price closing slightly lower.

I’ve been a fan of Sylvania Platinum (SLP) since early last year and during that time the share price has doubled, and the latest operations update has certainly done nothing to alter my view of the company.

Given that the company is now producing gold, I’ve been somewhat surprised by the lacklustre response that the market has given Ariana Resources (AAU) since that news came.

In this video from the storming success that was the 2017 UK Investor Show, Peter Hambro of Petropavlovsk (POG), Tony Manini of Asiamet Resources (ARS), Ross Norman of Sharps Pixley, Paul Atherley of Berkeley Energia (BKY), Dominic Frisby and Brian Kinane of Riverfort Global Capital discuss making money from gold and mining shares. And make sure that you keep April 21 2018 free for next year's UK Investor Show.

This podcast from Palisade follows E.B. Tucker recently attending a conference promoting the housing market, where there seemed to be a lot of interest and several big name speakers. He thinks this is an indication of where we are, as the housing market is cyclical the time to buy real estate was several years ago. Returns in real estate are likely to be remain low. If you're interested you could look at regions with growth, like Brazil where they have better demographics.

URU Metals (URU) seems to have this RNS lark cracked – if the market hates the first one that you issue, then just word it slightly differently and release news about the same project again the following day. You really couldn’t make it up!

A few weeks back I wrote a piece here suggesting that Central Asia Metals (CAML) was one of the best value mining shares around, and following the release of its final results I believe that to be even more the case now.

Hello Share Tasters. At the big UK Investor Show, just gone, I confided on the stage that I’d invested in Sula (SULA), a gold and iron company, because I read a piece from Uncle Tom on this tremendous website. This quoted another expert who felt that Sula was a possible ten-bagger in the making.

2017 will be a lucrative year, as we have seen the bottoming of the bear market. Uranium appears to have reached it’s bottom in early December. We are in the beginning of a new uranium bull market which should last for three to four years. The agriculture minerals are under-invested and phosphates may be a straight forward play. And gold shares will also have a run.

Lonmin PLC (LMI) was one of my best performing share tips during 2016, and following the recent pullback I think it is well worth another look.

In a recent interview with Maurice Jackson, Rick Rule orf the world's largest resource investor, Sprott, explained that out of the roughly 250,000 to 300,000 people involved in mining exploration, the majority will never be involved in the discovery of a single mine. This despite spending most of their life at it—an incredible fact.

Hello Share Trimmers. Though I usually research stocks very carefully, I am one of those idiots that, once in a blue moon, invests in a company I know little about. You get a gut feeling sometimes and somehow don’t want to spoil it by too detailed an examination. One such share for me is Sula (SULA), the gold and iron miner. I saw a glowing piece on this magnificent website not so long back on this stock.

Valuing small resource companies can be difficult, and often they will appear to be far cheaper than they really are. The bulletin boards, Twitter, etc are full of people extolling the virtues of the companies that they are invested in and pointing out that they should be worth far more than what the share price currently reflects.

In the mining sector, there is an old adage that is often invoked at the beginning of a new bull market – “producers will move before explorers and developers.” It might make intuitive sense, but the adage rings false claims Palisade Capital in its latest research. Over to the broker...

When a small mining company sees its market cap increase by over £66 million in the space of a month without any corresponding news to support such a rise, you have to wonder at the sanity of private investors who are still piling into the share.

As many experts continue to get it wrong on a regular basis, it is very hard to predict where commodity prices could go in the next few years, but I can see upside for nickel miners.

Hello Share Twiddlers. I’ve not looked at the giant miner Anglo American (AAL) for some years now. In general, mining companies have not inspired optimists like me over the last few years. The carnage has been terrible. But I’m getting the feeling that all the over-selling has come to an end now, to be replaced by the opposite activity.

Hello Share Splodgers. My last modest piece reflected the view of smarter investor Wildrides that two copper miners might be worth a look. He bases that view on the rising price of copper which had been depressed for a long time.

Hello Share Jumpers. When I suggested we take another look at the four British banks this week, I got a rather predictable comment from one of Shareprophets' most entertaining members, Wild Rides. You may have discovered from some of his other posts that Wilders dislikes the UK banks after burning his fingers on Lloyds Group (LLOY). 

He has just published a novel,  “Speculator- High Ground”,  which he is plugging hard but mining guru Doug Casey also has a few things to say about the mining sector which may surprise you. Notwithstanding the fact that up to 95% of mining companies have nothing to mine, Doug is mega bullish.

Many AIM companies look vastly overvalued and are largely reliant on sentiment revolving around the future development of assets in the ground to support their market cap.

It never ceases to amaze me how small AIM companies can sometimes continue to see large share price rises, even once the company has put out a statement saying that it knows of no reason for the recent rise!

I have been very pleased with the way that Glencore (GLEN) has performed since I covered it here a few months back, but I now feel that it is time to cash in, at least for the time being.

Sirius Minerals (SXX) has made good progress with its polyhalite fertiliser project so far and ultimately it will also be of benefit to the UK economy, but I struggle to see the share price going much higher in the shorter term.

Following the example set by Paul Warwick the chairman of worthless penny stock Andalas (ADL) in starting a blog, Sir Benjamin Dover of AIM listed Global Mining Endeavours has decided to follow suit and like Paul promises to be Candid in his approach. Blog number twelve....

When it comes to small AIM companies the appointment of a new broker can often be an indication that dilution is on the way, and I have to wonder if that is the case with Alexander Mining (AXM).

The market got rather excited last week about news of a licence agreement for Alexander Mining (AXM), but when you take a closer look it is hard to see why!

For some reason Arian Silver (AGQ) seems to be a favourite with PIs, but it seems to be just another AIM resource company that has achieved very little during its life and looks to be on its last legs!

Orosur Mining (OMI) is one of the higher-quality gold plays on the market. It operates the only gold-producing mine in Uruguay, where it has controlled costs and produced some excellent results in recent years. But this morning brings news that an NED has almost halved his stake, which reminds me of the bear case here.

Centamin (CEY) has proved a great example that it is possible to buy shares based on them being fundamentally too cheap, and then hold until the company recovers and you can reap the rewards.

Eurasia Mining (EUA) has been a favourite of mine for a couple of years now and it looks as though the long wait is finally about to come to fruition as production gets underway and that will send the share price zooming ahead.

I really don't take any notice at all of most (no make that nearly all) resaerch from Beaufort Securities but its mining analyst Sheldon Modeland is a sensible fellow and thus I bring you his latest note on Alecto Minerals (ALO). 

When you invest and trade based on value as you see it at the time, that can quickly change, and even with companies that you have a lot of faith in there can come a time when they can start to look expensive.

Having sold on the Nifty Fifty subscription site last year at above 100p, the following updates on Plastics Capital (PLA) with the shares currently at 93p following results for its year ended 31st March 2016…

Alexander Mining (AXM) seems to be popular amongst PIs at the moment, but I wonder how much of that actually relates to the performance of the company rather than being linked to the recent placing and warrants!

A couple of months ago I covered Glencore (GLEN) as a short, but I now think it is time to consider closing and looking to go long on the shares, especially on any dips.

Hello Share Swipers. BHP Billiton (BLT) is a famous mining and oil producing company. It provides us with iron ore, copper, diamonds, aluminium, the ebony nectar and natural gas.  I can imagine in my mind's eye many of you are now heading for the door. But hang on a bit. Not only is the oil price rising, but this company has been held down by issues which may have been overdone.

Having emphasised caution on shares in provider of data, studies and services to the oil, gas and mining exploration sectors, Getech (GTC) at 37.5p HERE, the following updates with them currently a further couple of percent lower, at 26p, on the back of a “Trading Update” with regard to the company’s year to end July 2016…