** My new book - about spreadbetting - has just been published, you can order it here:

http://books.global-investor.com/books/401334.htm?ginPtrCode=10453

Welcome to any new readers coming to the website from the new book, I would suggest you read the spreadbetting book in conjunction with Naked Trader, available here:

http://books.global-investor.com/books/27120.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
** NEXT UPDATE ON WEDNESDAY JUNE 8TH**
Sorry due to half term madness I just can't update this week but will be back with a full update next Wednesday.
It can't possibly be half term already surely? But it is.. starting on Friday! And yet another bank holiday!

We are crazily busy during half-term with all sorts of events plus we have relatives arriving from America and with all this going on I'm not yet sure whether I'll be able to update next week. I will make an effort if I can, it depends if I can find the time to do it.

So if there is no update next week, sorry, and I'll be back the following Wednesday, if there is an update I will try and do it around the usual time but it could also be earlier or later than usual. Whatever happens back as normal the week after. However I will try and do one!

When I say if can't possibly be half term yet it's because he was off for more than a month and he's only been back three weeks, it's crazy.

At more than 4 grand a term you do think the school must be profiting rather nicely from all these days off...

Talking schools we've just made a huge decision and decided to put Christopher into a different school from the September term.

It was a tough decision as the new school is further away so instead of being able to easily cycle or walk we'll have to drive though it's not too bad, about 20 minutes away.

The reason is when he moves to the bigger part of his current school at 8 there are just so many kids there we think he'll get lost in the pile. Although we are sad as the pre-prep he is in now is lovely.

By the way when I write this please take into account I do know I am extremely lucky to be able to afford to send him to a good school.

So in September he moves to a smaller school which is just for boys. It has a lovely ethos, takes boys of any ability and its aim is to bring out whatever the child is good at.

The head teacher knows them all by name - they are strong on other things bar ticking boxes and rote learning of stuff just to pass exams.

Trouble with mixed schools and what we find at his current one is that at this age the girls progress faster and it is a struggle for the boys to stay motivated.

So, all in all we are going to gamble and switch though it will cost us a term's fees.

After we signed up I decided to check the new school's Ofsted report.

Oh no! It was terrible. They weren't good at health and safety. Yes, I remember when we were being shown round by the head he didn't seem to mind one boy was balanced precariously on top of the basketball court.

They didn't vet people properly. Yes, I now remember someone looking dodgy. And they weren't good at security. Yes the receptionist just seemed to let anyone in who buzzed....

I was just about to say to Mrs NT we made a terrible mistake and we should stick with our current school when suddenly I spotted...

I'd read the report for a school .. in Devon! It just had the same name! Doh! (But relief all round).

Although it does show how your mind can find "proof" of something it thinks iis right...

I took Christopher to his first game of football as we went to see Fulham play Arsenal.

He was amazed so many people were there. We were right near the front.

He seemed to enjoy it though not the half-time burger. If you do go to Fulham do not eat anything there!

Anyhow we settled by the Michael Jackson statue at half time to meet some friends.

It really is a terrible statue though bizarrely people come from miles around to see it. It certainly is no thriller (did you see what I did there? Eh?)

Still, if Mohammed El-Fayed wants it there he should have it. After all without him the club would be in a much lower league, so let him do what he likes!

When substitute Gera came on someone behind us shouted: "We don't want you to leave.." which then started a chant.

A chant which soon disappeared when he got sent off just two minutes later possibly stopping Fulham from playing in Europe and probably responsible for Arsenal's last minute goal which squared the game.

Which was more than a bit annoying as I had £20 on a 2-1 Fulham win at 14-1.. thought that was in the bag till that last minute strike...

Iin fact I am thinking of sending Gera an invoice to cover the bet.

Amazingly there was little I had to do to cover Christopher's ears. Well there was the odd w

---

but said quietly enough... Fulham fans are very well behaved you know, after all the biggest fan is Hugh Grant.

It was the Arsenal fans that caused the trouble when they began a chant: "Spend some f***** money..." Ahem. Well, maybe that message will have got through to its manager Arsen Wenger who looked pretty miserable throughout the game.

Bobby Zamora really is very good and worthy of an England place, his clever passing and placement and setting up goals is his real value.

Anyhow we will be back to watch a game or two next season.

Couple of busy nights ahead, we are off tonight to see the opening night of "Pygmalion" at one of my sister's theatres (She owns five west end theatres)

It stars winner of Strictly Come Dancing kara Tointon and Rupert Everett at the Garrick Theatre, one of the five West End theatres owned by my clever sister (website for what's on at her theatres is nimaxtheatres dot com)

Then we're off to the after show party. My sister reckons this one is pretty good so we look forwards to a great night out!

We're going to try and go by river boat tonight so quite excited!

Tomorrow meeting up with some old work mates for a curry, not seen them for six years so plenty of gossip to catch up on and I suspect we will all look at each other and think: "They look a lot older...."

And next week is hectic with loads of half term events, cousins visiting from the states... but it's great to be busy and lots of things happening

To my question last time about what the Queen did when she needed a wee, reader Andy kindly supplied the answer:

Says Andy: "Funnily enough, we were wondering exactly the same thing as we watched the news yesterday (great minds think alike). After a quick call to Buck Pal, the answer is, she uses a "She Wee"."

Don't ask me to expand on this - google it, because it honestly is too much information! But hey now you all know how she does it.

Thanks a lot for the lovely feedback on the last seminar, so glad so many of you found it useful. I was especially pleased with some of the feedback where you realised what you were doing wrong.

And that many of you have grasped how important level 2 is. That is all so rewarding for me.
If you missed this one, never fear as I've booked a date for my next seminar which will be on
Friday June 24th at Heathrow. If you are interested, mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "June seminar interested" in the subject line.

There is a very decent early booking discount
for you to claim!

Beginners and improvers welcome! Come and spend the day with me, the markets and some lovely people - and of course, lunch!
If you mail me I will then send you details and a full agenda of what is covered. Also more details below somewhere.

My seminars are designed for beginners, dabblers and improvers and deals with everything from how to look for winners, how to research, spreadbetting, level 2 use how to time trades and short, how to use advfn properly and run your portfolio without having to spend money on systems and tipsters.. and tons more.
A lot of the day comes directly from the live markets and I show you many of the tricks I use to get good prices live. And there might even be the odd live trade or 2!

For those who have been to previous seminars I am also doing a follow up seminar at heathrow on Friday July 8th. That's all about a refresh of the previous seminar and also all day live level 2, timing, research and trade placing.

I get quite a few mails asking what magazines or news services I subscribe to etc. Well, hardly any!
However I do take (£8.99 a month though take the yearly option at 20% discount to that) a daily email which is my main source of news about such things as broker upgrades, main news items, analysis of stocks and markets, forthcoming company statements and events, stock recommendations and targets from the top brokers, what kind of earnings expected from companies and a whole heap more useful stuff.
I sometimes get ideas from this for companies to watch or monitor or even buy. And it's handy to get a summary of what the brokers are saying and looking at future earnings etc.
It usually arrives around 5ish every day.
I contacted the people that put it together and they offer a free 14 day trial of it to my readers - so you can cancel after 14 days if you don't feel it's useful enough.
Once you cut and paste this link into your browser, click "uk 14 days free trial" then I would go "yearly option" which gives a 20% discount making it just over £7 a month, as you can still cancel seems worth it. Hope you find it useful like I do. It's one of the few paid for news services that has really impressed.
http://bit.ly/eBPXuG

I do also get the Investors Chronicle delivered by the newsagent every Friday. It's always worth a read and brings to my attention things I may have missed.

An interesting email from a reader. The thrust of it was he was going to buy a share after doing a lot of research but then it went up 12% and he hadn't bought it yet. So he felt angry.
How does he stop/halt the feelings of anger?
Well, you have to take the emotion out of trading. Which isn't easy.
I suggested he should read this book.. by Jason Zweig
http://books.global-investor.com/books/256158.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
This is the one to read on psychology. Great read.
Fancy getting the naked trader updates direct into your inbox? And a bit before it gets updates on the net including news from my pension trades made from my SIPP?

All you have to do is take a phone or energy service from the Utility Discount Warehouse at www.utilitywarehouse.org.uk/fabdeal.

I get some commission and you get the service! On top of that you ought to make some amazing savings on your phone, broadband, or energy use or all! There's even an internet phone where you can make free calls from wi fi hotspots!

Prices are guaranteed lower than the top 6 suppliers but even better you can get huge discounts on your energy/phone bill if you shop at places like Marks and Spencers, Boots, Sainsburys and a whole load more. 5% of your spend comes directly off your billl. Many are saving a fortune from their energy bills.

So save a few quid, and get my stuff in your inbox! A win win? Mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "mail service" in the subject line and I'll send you details.

Spreadbetting firm Tradefair Spreads has upped its offer exclusively to Naked Trader readers to a £100 credit. This offer is exclusive to me and not available anywhere else...
I've been using them for a few weeks to check that I'm happy with the service. As you know I don't take ads or allow referrals on the site unless it's a company I've used and I feel confident about.
What I like about it is it's easy to use, spreads are surprisingly tight on the smaller companies and interestingly an automated stop loss is applied to each trade - so beginners know what their max loss is from the outset.
Anyway they now offer a £100 credit as long as you deposit £100. You get the credit after you placed 5 trades (Terms and conditions apply)
If you'd like to apply for an account with Tradefair Spreads and get the freebie click this link:
http://www.tradefair.com/promo/spreads/nakedtrader100/

The number of emails to me is nearly reaching saturation point and I'm struggling! I'm getting 100s which is lovely in a way but killing me in another.
The main problem is the length of some of them, indeed some run to the length of novels, so, please, help save my eyes and please keep mails to under 150 words.. you can do it! It's close to the stage where I am going to have to say I will answer all mails but those over 200 words will get deleted. Keep them short and sweet, please!!
Also, it's possible the answer you seek from me is already in FAQ's. And do remember I can't discuss individual shares with you as it would be classified as investment advice which I'm not authorised to give.
Many of you enjoy the cheap advfn toplists bronze deal through me as do many of you with the cheap level 2. However many of you say you want a half-way house to include real-time share prices always on.
So I'm pleased to announce I've managed to seal a new deal with Advfn for its "Silver" service - that's always on real-time share prices for a good saving (Bronze toplists etc are included in this).
The deal is via me you can save £30 for your first year by paying just £138.06 inc vat via me instead of £167.47.
Just mail me for full details if you'd like it with "silver" in the subject line.

They've just re-published "The Zulu Principle" by Jim Slater who's written a 2008 update at the beginning.
This is a brilliant classic book. Reading this is a real pleasure and it was a great idea to republish.
Jim believes like I do the best gains can come from smaller stocks and in an easy to read style takes you through how to evaluate smaller companies that are about to become bigger ones - he uses some excellent examples.
Really this is a must read for all more longer-term investors or anyone looking to grow their money... a number of you have also written to me about this book and praising it.
Here is the link to buy it:
http://books.global-investor.com/books/167207.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
Here's a very topical one: The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets by Peter Schiff.
The book is all about how to keep portfolios up in a down market. He focusses a lot on how to play commodities and win with some sensible advice especially on natural resources and precious metals. He is very much a realist and there is no rubbish here: some straight talking and some interesting strategies.
Everyone who invests should think seriously about keeping portfolios up in bad times so this book should be read.
Well worth picking up at this link:
http://books.global-investor.com/books/271958.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
To order my new book Naked Trader 2 for next day delivery click this link... or the cover of the book top right!
http://books.global-investor.com/books/27120.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
Several people have asked me for a recommendation on a book which shows how to study accounts in a reasonably easy way. The one I like the most is http://books.global-investor.com/books/15717.htm?ginPtrCode=10453 by Robert Leach. Ten crunch questions to ask before buying any company.
It' s a decent easy-to-read book with several key chapters and it's highly recommended. It's one I keep and dip into from time to time. To order, click this link... http://books.global-investor.com/books/15717.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
The best book on charting and easiest read on the subject is http://books.global-investor.com/books/15618.htm?ginPtrCode=10453 by Alistair Blair. Click here -> http://books.global-investor.com/books/15618.htm?ginPtrCode=10453
Another good one is the second edition of http://books.global-investor.com/books/23792.htm?ginPtrCode=10453 by Peter Temple. Included in this one is how to use spreadbetting, CFD's warrants and trackers to reduce risk. And there are some decent trading strategies too.
This is an excellent book for new investors and also experienced ones. It explains all the things you may not be sure about in the markets and will explain the tools that are there. To order The Investors Toolbox by Peter Temple (new edition) click the following link for delivery in 24 hours... http://books.global-investor.com/books/23792.htm?ginPtrCode=10453

**** BOOKING FOR FRIDAY JUNE 24TH AT HEATHROW NOW OPEN**

Fancy spending a day with me, learning all the ways I have learned over the years to find good shares and play the markets? Well, you can at one of my seminars!
Booking is open for the Naked Trader seminar on Friday June 24th

Price is £550 plus vat. There is an early bookers discount currently available.
That includes three course lunch, coffees, snacks etc. There is an early bookers discount currently available.
The seminar is mainly aimed at beginners and dabblers though improvers are welcome too.
Topics covered using live market feeds all day include: Market psychology, level 2 - a simple guide to how to use it for better timing; how to value companies; finding companies that are about to rise. I will also cover techniques for handling events such as the recent meltdown and volatility.
Spreadbetting: How to use it to gain an edge and go short. Market makers - how they work and how to beat them; how to stop losing money and make it instead and plenty more.
How to plan trade entries and exits - how to research companies and understand reports, plus all those niggly questions you always wanted to ask. How to set stop losses and targets. Charts and how to use them.
Also covered: Market maker tricks: How to spot tree shakes and use them in your favour, How to tell when NOT to buy a share. I use live ADVFN all day with lots of level 2 and looks at all kind of live market data.
The idea behind the seminar is SIMPLICITY. I don't use jargon or fancy words - everything is in PLAIN ENGLISH! No question is too stupid and the event is held in a friendly relaxed and supportive environment.
The idea is you will come away from the event I hope a wise and better investor with lots of new ideas. I try and translate complex topics into easy bite size pieces. I also aim for it to be entertaining as well as instructive.
If you are interested please e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "seminar interested" in the subject line and I will send you full details of the event including comments from those who have come to previous seminars and you can then decide whether you would like to come. See you there!
One seminar attendee Clare wanted to write a testimonial about her experiences at the seminar which follows now!
"I've just come back buzzing from one of Robbie's seminars. What a day! He's just brilliant, and manages to pack an awful lot into one day, and with his enthusiastic and humorous delivery the day just flies by. There are no gimmicks, no sell, no "˜get-rich-quick' promises, just his own solid, sound approach which he has learnt over the years and which works.
He shows you how to minimise the risks and maximise the profits and points out the banana skins on the way. Where the seminar really comes into its own is when he teaches using live level 2. Hearing him talk through his thought processes and reasoning is invaluable, and really brings home everything from the book. He has endless patience answering peoples' questions, and really seems to care that everybody understands.
On top of that, you meet some really nice like minded people and swap e mail addresses, you're plied with
chocolates and coffee all day, have a great lunch and spend the evening getting tiddled with Robbie in the
bar afterwards! You might even get to see the amazing crocodile boots . . . .
Don't worry about the cost, it's easily worth it, and you'll soon make it back with your new-found investment skills, and in what you're no longer losing. If you're thinking of going along to his next seminar, whether you're a novice or an experienced trader, don't hesitate ""just go!
Thanks Clare, did you want the tenner in cash, or will a cheque do?

I've started using Tradefair for spreadbetting - I like the auto generated stop losses which help to maintain discipline and that's good for beginners I think. And exclusively for Naked Trader readers they upped the offer to £100 credit.
So there's now a £100 credit on offer for anyone opening an account via me. You get that after 5 spreadbets (terms and conditions apply)
To get the offer, click here:
http://www.tradefair.com/promo/spreads/nakedtrader100/

Now TV expert Mary Portas has been appointed to sort out retail for the Government I just had a great idea!

Let's scrap the current cabinet and instal TV experts in their jobs instead?

Prime Minister: Anne Robinson. She wouldn't put up with any nonsense and of course botox could be made compulsory for the over 60s creating a boost to the ecomony.

Chancellor: Theo Paphitis . He'll make sure your children's inheritance won't be frittered away . Though his office door will have a permanent sign: "I'm Out" .

Jobs: Lord Sugar. It'll make it easy to fire people.

Transport: Jeremy Clarkson. He could ban all those poncey environmental cars. Let's get some real cars on the road.

Home Secretary: Graham Norton. He'll sort out our homes and make sure they look nice.

Education: Simon Cowell. After all we want our kids to grow up to become TV stars, don't we?

Foreign: Gordon Ramsay. He's just tell every other country to f*** right off.

Justice Minister: Ryan Giggs.

All ministers will be fully expected to bonk a bimbo half their age, preferably after appearing on Big Brother.

All that money wasted on injunctions! Just to stop us knowing that some overpaid footballer had bonked a bimbo.

I think it's time that he law said if you happen to be famous and you bonk a bimbo then expect it to get into the papers and it's just tough luck.

Being famous gets you good things but you have to take the negative part of it too.

If Giggs had just admitted it, said sorry etc, the story would have quickly disappeared.

Instead by trying to sue everyone he's made himself look like a right idiot.

He ought to come out and say: "Look I agree I've been an idiot all round, please forgive me, it won't happen again, all injunctions are off, here is what happened, sorry to all concerned."

Then it will all go away for him.

Footballers and those of high rank, power and money will of course always fall to the temptations of the younger woman, that is life.

But they must know from now on, it they do, they must pay the consequences and that papers can publish the details as long as they are true.

Dunno about you but I've had enough of reading about all the famous and powerful men bedding these women.

What a fantastic documentary "All watched over by machines of loving grace" was and it continues next week, worth catching it on I Player if you missed it.

A just brilliant watch that gives a different perspective on recent financial turmoils across the world. Catch it if you can. It's hard to sum it up but those who have already seen it will know what I mean..

I can't watch the Apprentice tonight as out to the theatre so please so not mail me to discuss it till the weekend as it's going on tape (well on sky plus)

The right person went last week but I do wonder if it had been an attractive woman whether he would have stayed...

Four In A Room is an interesting new show where people try and sell their stuff to dealers. Interesting for traders because part of it is bluffing to get a better price! Worth a look.

The spreadbetting firm I use for sports betting is here:
Via this link Open a Sporting Index account and there's £100 cash offer - please check terms and conditions which apply.

http://www.sportingindex.com/?tpid=6755
Do remember if you do bet you ought to treat sports spreadbetting as entertainment - and expect to lose! Also with spreadbetting work out what your max loss could be and make sure you can afford it! In other words if you say backed the favourite at 15 for a fiver and they come nowhere your max loss is £75.

Carole writes :
This is only my second email to you since last September's seminar, promise. Catching up on one of your archived diaries, for a laugh, I have to disagree with your comments re the royal wedding.

I am much looking forward to it. And Prince William was great in Christchurch last week at the Memorial Service, all my many friends living there have commented on his presence, some attaching photos they had taken! But do, please, keep writing and rambling.

You're allowed to disagree with me if you want. But I think the Royal Wedding is more of a girly thing isn't it?

I don't think us men are really that interested in the whole thing. But I hope you enjoy it, they appear to be a nice young couple and wish them all the best.

But it must be a little strange at that age that whereever you go, people wave at you and you don't see any real life..
Duane writes:
Wanted to say a big thank you to you and Mrs NT for an amazing day of learning and fun at your seminar.

The way you explained the share trading from start to finish was understandable and really interesting, well worth the seminar fee!
It was great to hear such down to earth and honest assessment from a successful trader like yourself. The way you explained everything was good revision from your book and gave further insight into successful share trading.

I particularly liked your live trades and going through your accounts when you gave snippets of why you invested in certain shares and why you kept/dumped them. Also helpful was the way you searched for prospective shares and within minutes discounted them or put them on a short list for further examination and correct entry points. Amazing!
You could really tell that you loved doing what you do and your energy levels to keep going till 10pm was well....... I had to leave at 9pm I was shattered!

Thanks again Robbie I am keen to put into practice what you have taught me. Even though you make squillions from your trades and I am sure don't need to do the seminars for financial gain, but please keep doing those seminars for newbies like me!

Thanks Duane! Don't expect to be doing them foreever but very rewarding for me to help people so expect to carry on for a while longer.
Malcolm writes:
A thousand thanks for the seminar, which I found both informative and inspiring. If I can keep my own psychology somewhere near balanced I can make steady money at this until I pop off.

I was particularly pleased to find your approach so simple. This chimes with Warren Buffet, who of course says,

'If calculus or algebra were required to be a great investor, I'd have to go back to delivering newspapers.'

It also confirms my own prejudice, and what my friends in the City have told me, namely, that the financial complexity is unnecessary, only there to bamboozle the unwitting public, and doesn't make it any easier for the City boys to make money. Hence nine out of ten funds haven't beaten the index in any four year period since 1914 (Motley Fool).

Thanks Malcolm. Glad to hear and hope you don't pop off just yet. I agree: simplicity is best and all the jargon tends to be just there to make the jargon talker sound important or that they know what they are talking about.

Terry writes:
Fantastic seminar.

I have always been sceptical of the public testaments you see on web sites
saying how great an event was. Now I'm one of those people!. I
genuinely believe that the tips and techniques as well as the overall
approach you demonstrated will radically improve my trading performance

Thanks Terry, well all the testaments are real but know what you mean and glad you feel it was worth it!
Stephen writes:
I read your book and did the course - and I wasn't sure if I'd recoup the cost, it's been 2 years and I've made £38k + saved a loss transferring a Jupiter ISA heavily invested in BP. I can't tell you how important this is or how grateful I am. That's just me, who knows how much people have made with your help and saved by not making mistakes. I wanted to get into shares as they recovered after the crunch, but I assumed I had to put a large amount in one company I thought would make a big jump.
But what happens when you make £1m on the website, will you still do courses? I don't know how you do your ISA and SIPP investments, write the website, books, courses and answer e-mails. But please don't give it up. Couldn't you do the courses and have a standing website which gets updated with your trades say once a month so people can see what you do..

Stephen thanks so much for such a nice mail and much appreciated! Dunno about the future, I feel like I'm getting jaded. It's possible I might just reduce it all at some point to twice a month after going weekly - that would probably help. The other problem is other people's angst is getting to me and the email workload becoming overwhelming. I think after ten years it might be time for me to quit. Anyway good luck with your trades and hope you make a lot more.

I have 3 great offers from ADVFN.

SAVE OVER £120 !
First great deal: If you want level 2, though me it is only £305 for your first year including VAT!
This compares to £432 direct from advfn so this deal saves you over £120! ADVFN level 2 also includes all the live trades made through Plus Markets which I find invaluable.
To accept this great deal just e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "Level 2 offer" in the subject line and I will tell you how to get it. Level 2 gives you access to all the market maker positions and the order book and I would not trade without it! More on level 2 in my book and I spend hours on it at my seminars.

Deal two is ADVFN's bronze subscription - normally £72 pa - available from me for only £41! (inc vat) That's a saving of over £30! You access to the premium bulletin board which contains my discussion forum with direct access to chat to me and some very good traders. Plus you get ADVFN's premium top lists which I think are a must for finding great stock picks. That includes great lists like ex dividend dates, market maker buys plus chart breakouts and downs. All as explained in the book.
To take up the offer, e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with Bronze in the subject line and I will tell you how to claim the deal.

Bronze is included inside the level 2 deal.

Deal three is ADVFN's silver subscription - for those of you who want all the benefits of Bronze AND always on real-time prices.. no more using the back button and getting frozen out!

The deal is via me you can save nearly £30 for your first year by paying just £141 inc vat via me instead of £169.20.
Just mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com if you'd like this deal with "silver" in the subject line.

Want to try out broker Selftrade superb trading system for no risk? You only have to trade once to get £50 bunged into your account! You get £50 and I get £50.
All online deals are just £12.50 with no funny small print. Charges for phone deals are higher, check terms and conditions. They also charge £35 plus vat pa for all accounts. Follow this link...
http://tinyurl.com/57hp4n

.... continue to be a bit nearly summery unsure of things though the 5800 level seems to be holding for now, if it breaks there could be some downside to come. Hey, but hopefully not in my off the radar shares!

But of course we may just remain in the 5800-6100 range in which case the ftse will be a buy in the low 5800s and a sell anywhere around 6000-6100.

I've bought into Gresham Computers (GHT) getting 10,000 shares at 43.7. Love the bullish statements coming from this company. The share price is rising rapidly and with such a small market cap I think there is potential for further very nice rises and would expect to hold these for the medium-term for more.

Potential as a longer-term hold as long as it keeps producing good statements... Targetting 60p initially stop 35.

Onto spreadbets I bought a tenner of Hiscox (HSX) at 414. I confess I know little about how to value the insurance sector - but the chart of this one looks so strong I am literally taking a gamble with it and little more. Target 500 stop 390.

I've also bought some Electrocompents (ECM) on the spreads at 286. Some very decent statements, this company looks extremely strong and if it can conquer the whole number at 300, that would be bullish for a nice run up to the 350 mark.

Both the above would probably get hit short-term if the market turns down so it's possible I might take a quick small loss on them and come back to them at a later date but I'll play it by ear.

There have been a lot of really crappy floats in the last few months the worst of which was Betfair which I made a fortune shorting.

Two new to my mind crappy floats have come up which were really to me just begging to be shorted, so I did.

First off was Glencore (GLEN). It's massive and will go straight into the FTSE but to my mind the reason it's being floated is those who have made their mega millions out of the float are doing it because they think the commodity boom for now is near the top. And based on that I shorted.

I got a tenner short at 531. Spreadbet firms luckily traded it before the official launch. Of course FTSE funds will have to buy in so maybe this short is a bit too early but I'd be surprised if over the summer it didn't fall below 500. Of course I could be totally wrong and it is a gamble. Target 450 stop 570.

I never get involved in USA shares. It's not my scene, and in any event I like to shut off at 4.30 and i don't want to worry about what shares in the US are doing at 9pm...!

However I have done my first (and probably last) which is short the ludicrous Linkedin which was given a valuation of something crazy in the billions. Crazy for a company making diddly squat.

Also I'm sick to death of getting dozens of these frigging mails in my box every day asking me if I want to link to someone I don't know. No I don't, life is short and I really have better things to do. Then more emails reminding me about the invitation I didn't want in the first place. So I must admit to some pleasure in shorting it.

I didn't think I would be able to short but was delighted when I typed the company into Tradefair and there is was, I could short! So I did. Quite honestly having never done US shorts before I wasn't totally sure about the staking but as Tradefair seemed to kick off with 0.5 I started with that then cautiously edged it up. So I have a short of 1 at a tad under 102. I'm too lazy to figure out the staking but right now I'm in profit by a bit so we'll see. I guess it if heads over the 106 figure and more I've got it wrong for now and take a small loss.

I tried to short it a bit more this afternoon with Tradefair close to 100 but it came back with "This share is prohibited from being shorted". No idea what that is about but hey I already shorted it so there! Possibly it's because the Americans maybe give a new issue a few days before it can be shorted.

If that is so, then I would imagine once people can short properly it ought to go down?

Hey I thiink I figured it out, Linkedin is facebook for ugly people with no friends, right? (What do you mean that ought to suit me, bloody cheek.)

I was forced to sell 600 Group, well pretty much. It said it was moving to the aim market from main and so i would have to sell the shares at some point soon anyhow as they are in an ISA so my thought is to do it rightaway for 34 for a profit of £495. (Aim shares aren't allowed in Isas) . I suppose they're doing it to save money but I prefer moves the other way. Also all Isa holders will have to sell up so there is bound to be selling pressure. However I suspect once it is moved to AIM it will probably be a good buy at a lower price for outside an isa. Though I will just move on and leave it alone especially as it's a bit of a mean thing to do to your patient Isa holders to force them to sell and buy back. Boo, hiss!

I sold e2v. It's reached the target and on looking at it again my view is that's probably about right for now so I am out at 130 for a profit of £2,928. That's a total profit banked for the site this week of £3,423.

Wow, a really excellent statement from Telecom Plus (TEP) - my biggest holding by some way .. I have very roughly about £200,000 of these shares for the slow steady increase in capital and the big dividend which brings me a good yearly income. Website profit for the shares must be well over £30,000 though I'm too lazy to add it up.

Profits up to near £28m, and a fantastic new deal with N Power which is even supplying them with £3m of promotion money so they can offer customers in their first year an addtional 10% off their gas and electricity bills. The outlook for growth is terrific: it can offer a low cost package of utilities and telephony all on one monthly bill and with a cashcard offering discounts, 10% off for the first year and various guarantees on being the cheapest for energy and telephony, including mobiles plus improved margins means this to me looks like a long-term hold for many years and I believe the shares will double from here over time while remaining a nice sleep at night share even if the market tanks.

On top of that, entry into the FTSE 250 could be on the cards later this year as it grows. So a very happy holder.

Please note re the above I have been a distributor for many years and I'm a big fan of the management!

And if you'd like to take advantage of the low rates then sign up at
www.utilitywarehouse.org.uk/fabdeal

I get some monthly commission if you do sign up at that site, so thanks - you get cheap rates and I get commission. good for both of us.

Yes, I know a blatant plug. But, give me a break. I turn down thousands of pounds by not allowing ads on this site for tipsters, systems and google words and the rest of it. So be fair.

Entertainment One came up with an excellent statement, Peppa Pig is booming in the USA and it looks alike a great share to hold onto long term. A library worth a fortune too. I reckon it will power up to 200 odd from here in time.

TT Electronics hasn't done much for me yet but 200p looks like becoming support. Laird has proved disappointing so far but could still turn into a profiot
London Capital Group reported a reasonable start to the year with a good balance sheet and plenty of cash, it has also won a decent contract with TD Waterhouse which has pushed the price up even more, very nice profits building there now. That contract is a good win and along with the fundies the share should I think be gradually rerated up to a quid. I simply think London Capital which also runs Tradefair and some others is under the radar but when it gets noticed I think it will rise quickly.

Treatt's report proved, er, a treat.. very nice statement and with a tad of profit takers out of the way could be set for a leap up towards a fiver. Shaft Stinker... I mean Shaft Sinker made a fair report, it remains risky but I'll stay with it hoping it doesn't prove a sinker, or indeed, a stinker. I'm in a small loss at present. The Vitec Group, an unsung hero of the portfolio reported great results and I'm up and over £4,000 profit here. Looks good for a few more points.

Anite has suddenly powered ahead with a very powerful breakout over 70p, looks good for more.

Capital Drill holds well above 100p I mark this down as a longer termer which could produce fantastic returns and await a further rerating in due course.

Directors of Cadogan have bought some pretty decent amounts it was reported today. That's good news and a vote of confidence. This one could go very well later if this year if drills prove positive. In the meantime it has some good agreements in place.

Exillon keeps on dishing out good reports. Drilling is going well and worth staying patient with event though I am already up a lot.... Should go a lot higher given some time and might become a core holding. Good support for this in the low 400s. It might well hang about here for a bit though.

My Pace bounce bet is kind of working but I'm nervous about it, some bid rumours are around which I am not sure I believe and one way or another I don't want to hold them for too much longer.

MS International couldn't manage to hold the higher level, still will be patient. AZ Electronics shines well. If it can head above 300 it will look very bullish but could prove a barrier. The last couple of days it holds well around 300p and hoping it can break clear soon.. it tries hard again, potential bid candidate I think.

Recent spreadbet Croda goes very well now indeed as does recent buy Avon Rubber Already up more than 30% since buying recently, it cleared 300 today so here's hoping for a lift up to 350 ish.

Alternative Networks continues to move gently higher. A lovely share off the radar which shows little sign of stopping. Smashing profits here now. Would suspect a plateau here at 240 before onwards to 300.
Perhaps after the June results. Good rising dividend too.

Volex continues to move much higher yet again but it struggles a bit to properly clear 300p. Kentz goes from strength to strength and is going to move to the main market and about time. Once it does will get some in my ISA. Until then happy to hold in a spreadbet where I'm in profit by over £5.000. Character remains ultra disappointing but I looked at it afresh and it just appears so cheap I'm sticking with it despite it hovering at stop levels.

Dialight has given back a little but the website holds profits of nearly £40,000. In reality, as those who've come to seminars have seen, my profits actually way greater than this. Yule Catto has at last picked up after some poor days and looks like it has bottomed at 200 and seems very undervalued. Devro is trying to get hold of the 3oo level. Aggreko has stormed ahead even higher, what a great business and this is simply one to continue to hold, probably for another year.

Recent buy Harvey Nash goes up again today and now hits well over over 80p. Very nice indeed now. BTG, long-termer continues to look good has nicely doubled and looks strong this week after another good statement.

Microgen remains a cracker and some lovely profits of more than £20,000 for the site. What a lovely share this has been since I bought it live at a seminar at 45p. It holds its value and slowly advances. Up again today, and it has also paid out some nice dividends.

Little LOQ holds well at a higher price, still think 2 quid could be achievable, good summer weather will help.
Petrofac remains a core hold. Though easy for me to say that as I bought in the 350 area. Together with spinoff Enquest sees me sitting on profits of £30,000. Long termers with great profits like New Brit, Porvair etc stay in and Sepura tries to conquer 60.

Will be back with more on the markets next Wednesday
I've been getting e-mails regarding my use of direct market access and who I use. I've tried a few and for me the easiest system for me is here:
http://www.igmarkets.co.uk/?QPID=1079&QPPID=1
Direct market access means you can place orders directly onto the order book bypassing brokers and market-makers with a chance to buy at the "sell" price. I would suggest you ensure you know what you're doing first but IG does provide much education with its "tradesense" educational tool which comes with it.
I also use its spreadbetting service too along with other firms like Tradefair because it now provides trailing stops which to me is a pretty sensible way of trading. Link is here: -
http://www.igindex.co.uk/?QPID=1078&QPPID=1
that also includes a pretty decent educational programme. As usual before opening accounts please read all the warnings on the sites. You can lose a lot of money if you're not careful so pay close attention to them and make sure you always understand what you are doing and what your potential losses are.

I've also started using Tradefair for spreadbetting - I like the auto generated stop losses which help to maintain discipline and that's good for beginners I think. And exclusively for Naked Trader readers they upped the offer to £100 credit.
So there's now a £100 credit on offer for anyone opening an account via me. You get that after 5 spreadbets (terms and conditions apply).
To get the offer, click here:
http://www.tradefair.com/promo/spreads/nakedtrader100/

If you want to get the contents of The Naked Trader website into your mailbox instead of waiting for the update to come through, plus exclusively news on the progress of my SIPP from the old Sunday Times column inc new higher risk Aim buys made for that, e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with SIPP in the subject line for details of how to get it.

Want to quit the rat race? Try and start a new source of income so one day you can tell the boss to stuff it? You could do what I did to escape my grotty office job and become an independent distributor for the Utilities Discount Warehouse.
You get to sell great broadband, phone packages and energy to friends, relatives, contacts and anyone else you find and you get cash for each sale but more importantly you get a cut of their spend EVERY MONTH for as long as they are a customer!
It's called residual income and is a far better way to enjoy a ripe old age than relying on a pension. Because even after you stop selling the money STILL comes in!
I still get paid EVERY MONTH for sales I made back in 1999! Every time a customer uses broadband or the phone or switches on a light you get paid.
It's a great business and backed by a stock market company (Telecom Plus), a dedicated team of advisors.. and me to help you on your way!
Not only do you get paid out every month for each customer you can take on distributors. encourage them like I do and get paid on their sales as well.
One day, say you could made redundant, needed a year off or wanted to retire early can you imagine what joy it is to have the regular income coming in. It's wonderful.
You have to work at it, but if you do genuine repeat wealth could be yours. I did it. You can too. For full details, why not email me at robbiethetrader@aol.com.
An overview is also available at http://www.telecomplus.org.uk/fabdeal you can sign up directly there but do tell me!
****
Trade tables follow! Trades are current open and recently closed trades. Closed trades feature the closing price and the amount I won or lost. All others are open. Trades get updated a little later than the narrative. Trading costs are ignored, however I also do not add in dividend payments and with the kinds of companies I buy, dividends tend to equal or outweigh costs. Spread rollovers ignored for web purposes. Tables as accurate as poss however a mistake or two can creep in and very occasionally if I forgot I sold or bought something it will be added at a later time.
Trades first reported Wednesday afternoons under "Markets" section.. afraid I can't do live trades as that would turn me into a tipster and I'd have to be regulated!