Hello, Share Finders. One of the mysteries about the effect on the market of the pestilence concerns gold. Why has it not risen a lot higher? After all, don't we seek refuge in the yellow metal when shares and currencies let us down in a crisis? True, some gold shares have risen. My own investment in Centamin (CEY) has recovered all my earlier paper losses, for example. But on the whole, gold prices have not rocketed as we might have expected...

An old friend of mine tipped me the shares of silver miner Hochschild Mining (HOC) at around 70p in late 2008 as the GFC panic was at its peak. When I asked him about the prospects for silver he appeared to be only vaguely aware that this was its game...

Today's training walk is with my daughter and is almost 12 miles. In burning heat and with my MAGA cap on which us luck. Please donate to Woodlarks here. In today's show I warn you that you MUST sell all the corona testing plays NOW. Then I look at Intu (INTU) - a great selling opportunity - and then at one of my worst share tips & investments for which I apologise to all, Wishbone Gold (WSBN).

“Driver Group plc (DRV), the global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, today announces that its Group Chief Executive Officer, Gordon Wilkinson, has left the Company with effect from 31 May 2020 by mutual agreement and with the good wishes of the Board and senior executive team.” Hmmm...

A “Trading Statement” from Xaar (XAR) including “overall trading in the first four months of the new financial year has been in line with the expectation we established before the Covid-19 outbreak”… but the shares have responded currently approaching 5% lower towards 60p...

Green on the screen for the markets, but little to inspire in terms of at-the-margin corporate news. The Tesco (TSCO) CFO retirement is very orderly (and not happening until next year in any case), whilst I see the hope of Intu Properties (INTU) that it will collect £310 million of rent this year. Apparently that this is ‘only’ 37% worse than last year is good news...hence a short squeeze today. Good luck to those playing that. My view remains that the banks have a choice between going full zombie on it...or forcing it into administration and salvaging what they can. Today I am going to write about Electrocomponents (ECM)...

In April and May we were at peak Covid hysteria. Across the world authorities like the disgraced Public Health England which had shamed themselves by having limited supplies of PPE and other items hastened to order as many Covid tests as they could. Now they are well stocked by testing at way under capacity. So what is going on and why should Novacyt (NCYT) care.

Early this year we showed the top shorted London-listed shares at the start of 2020. How's the performance as at the end of May? (those in bold remain from 2019)...

Between June and December 2016, I commented extensively in a series of article on the greed of William Dewsall, the CEO of Gable Insurance Holdings Inc, who extracted over £15 million in cash from the Group and its dire prospects, which to remind readers ended up being worthless when its insurance subsidiary company was placed into administration on 17 November 2016. Natch Nomad and broker Zeus and the oxymorons at AIM Regulation did nothing until it was too late.

Having failed to cure cancer, almost out of cash ValiRx (VAL) needs another story to ramp to allow its low-life brokers Peterhouse to get another discounted placing away to its spivvy flipper mates. Ahoy is that a bandwagon I see in the distance?  Yes it is the Covid Express. Time to jump aboard.

Hello, Share Threshers. It’s with a heavy heart that a company I’ve long supported and which has made me quite a profit over many years, is now on my ‘probably sell soon’ list. The company is Photo-Me (PHTM)...

AIM-listed Rurelec (RUR), the shambles of a carcass left behind by Peter Earle, has offered up its FY19 results this morning and the news is almost good. Actually, compared to the technically insolvent POS its current management inherited, it is something of a miracle just because it has survived so long...

Four reasons to be happy:  Joshua is back at nursery, my daughter has arrived for a week long holiday, I seem to be set for another £50,000 unexpected pension windfall ( bring on retirement!) and my latest premium podcast with Aidan Bishop, Matt Earl and me is a humdinger and is live HERE. Elsewhere I have frank words with Colin Bird and discuss Galileo (GLR), today's discussions with the FCA, Amigo (AMGO) and Powerhouse Energy (PHE) . Oh, PS, please dionate your £10 HERE

As the tweet below shows, UK Oil & Gas (UKOG) operated Horse Hill has been over-run by the unthinking unwashed. For, perhaps, the first time ever my sympathies are with Lyin' Steve Sanderson, Big Dave Lenigas et al who should, in my view turn on the water cannons full blast. After all there is plenty of water coming out of Horse Hill, why not use it? 

An “operational and financial update” from Marshall Motor Holdings (MMH), the UK automotive retailer, as “all 117 car showrooms re-opened from today as well as all of the group's other operating units, under revised, COVID-19 secure, operating procedures”...

Another new month, another set of disclosure at bad boy Amigo Holdings (AMGO) which shows that the financial markets are a soap opera without parallel. For those of you who want some elements of the backstory, then check out this posting a month or so ago. Anyhow across a couple of regulatory updates, the company has admitted…

I have today, finally, got around to asking the FCA to investigate the covert work being done by unregulated Gavin Burnell of Globo and Beaufort infamy for bucket shop broker Novum. But maybe there is a reason why Novum has to swim in the gutter...it needs the cash so badly.

Yesterday I explained how Optibiotix (OPTI) has sold 4.5 million shares in Skinbiotherapeutics (SBTX)  on Friday, a trade yet to be announced but where the buyer is clearly already selling. But this scandal is, I believe far, far bigger and should be enough to see SP Angel cold shouldered by the AIM Community.

Having asked for readers tips for 2020 for the prize of 1/2 litre of Tom Winnifrith's Greek Hovel olive oil (2020 harvest) HERE, the following is an update on performance at the end of May (to be eligible needed to have selected, on a 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 2020)...

An anthem for libertarians from my pal Frisby. Enjoy.