Right time to continue on some back stories! After the poker night came... Legoland Day!
So we drove off to Legoland... first I bought the tickets online for a discount but it was still just a share under £100 for the three of us!
Which is no problem for me as I have a few quid but not sure how a family of four on a budget could manage it. A day there could cost £200, no bother.
What was I expecting? Oh, something horrible and tacky I guess and I didn't expect to enjoy it.
So I was amazed. Easy to park, right outside. No queues to get in, straight through with the internet tickets.
What a place. We ended up there all day, I'd expected three hours and even during a whole day there we didn't get to see everything.
It's excellent for kids of any age and especially good for a four-year-old with plenty of attractions.
Mrs NT took him on the scarier rides.
I have to say the look of wild pleasure on his face on the train ride made me feel so good.
Sadly I was raised by a selfish alcoholic father who couldn't have cared less about me. This is not going to happen with my son who I hope will have a childhood to remember.
I went on a couple of the docile rides, liked the dinosaur one. The food and drink there weren't bad too and not too off the scale on price.
Christopher got his "driving licence" after driving a bumper car really well. We had a picnic on the grass. It's so clean and well run and worth the money.
The lego bits are spectacular with many parts of the world shown in Lego including Big Ben.
We were so impressed with the place I bought us annual passes so we can now go there anytime we like without paying any more.
Christopher arrived home knackered - I had to carry him from the car - he'd had a brilliant day leaving me a very happy dad!
Bank holiday Monday we went to Kempton Park races with some friends for family fun day. Not a bad effort, they had face painting, bouncy castle and a balloon man.
Lucky for me our friends helped to look after Christopher quite a bit while me and pal went off to do a bit of gambling. I did quite a lot of work on the main handicap of the day.
The one I really fancied was a 14-1 shot, so I had £50 on the nose together with a couple of other win onlies on two others.
Hurrah!! My horse romped home - and the other two came in second and third but no payback on those. If only I'd done the tricast! I can't imagine how much it paid but it would have been a lot!
A nice £700 was handed over and I only gave £200 of it back as of course I backed losers for the rest of the day!
Christopher got a brilliant alien balloon which he wore on his head - he seemed to even enjoy watching the races.
So another really lovely day to make it a bank holiday to remember for us!
I am meeting a website reader on Saturday afternoon who is kindly taking me to see Fulham play Aston Villa! Should be a good game and I'll tell you all about it in the next update.
See you at my place next to the ground on Saturday Peter! I'll have tea and toast waiting!
There's a really lovely Big Issue seller near the little office I've rented while building work is being done.
You can tell he's really trying hard to get back into society. You should have seen the look on his face when I gave him £50 for my copy and told him to keep the change!
I much prefer this method of giving. If you usually pass a big issue seller and don't think about giving them anything think again. if you can afford it, give them a fiver or a tenner.
Because they are homeless but making a real proper effort to get back on their feet without resorting to begging. When you give them money it is going directly to the person who needs it with no middleman taking a cut.
So please, go and buy a Big Issue - hand over a note and don't ask for change.

I'll be spending part of this weekend working on next Friday's seminar - I've been through all the questionaires today - they are fascinating, thanks to all of you for being so honest.

It really helps me to pitch the day right and we'll be discussing some of the issues arising from them!

Already looking forwards to seeing you all next Friday for what I hope will be an enjoyable day. What's great about the seminars for me is I never know what's going to happen in the live markets and where things will take us.

You should all have the venue details etc, if not please let me know, otherwise see you there next Friday.
My May 15th seminar is sold out, sorry to disappoint some of you - but the next one which is already filling up is June 26th.
And even better there is again an early booker discount for that! if you are interested in June's event please mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "June seminar interested" in the subject line. And I will send you details. It's held close to Heathrow Airport.

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!

There is more detail on the seminar below. Already looking forwards to meeting all of you coming to the May event!
Thanks for the great spreadbetting stories - winning and losing stories for my upcoming spreadbetting book welcome at.. thenakedtrader@aol.com (spread stories ONLY to this address please!! -please use my normal address for anything else).

Did you lose spreadbetting? Why and what happened? Or have you found it easy and you're a winner? Tell me! Anyone whose story I use gets a free copy.

Hurrah! Spreadbetting firm Tradefair (Betfair's sister) has upped its offer exclusively to Naked Trader readers to a £100 credit!
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 2 trades (non equity)

If you'd like to open an account with Tradefair and get the freebie and try them out e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "Tradefair" in the subject line and I'll send you info on how to claim the new £100 credit.
Still with BT for your phone line? Why? Move over to Utilities Discount Warehouse under me and pay just £8.99 for your line rental, and deal with a nice company. I get commission and in return you get my e-mail - this site into your mailbox at every update!

You could also add energy, guaranteed cheaper than the top 6 suppliers and get the lot on one bill every month. Mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com if you fancy it. Easy to do!

I'm glad to say MF Global has improved its offer to readers....
First you get a free £2 bet on the FTSE.. and secondly when you place your first bet with them they will cover the potential loss of up to £100 if the trade moves against you.
I use MF Global myself for spreadbets on the smaller companies as they have more online than anyone else and offer spreads on pretty much everything.
To take up the offer either click the MF banner you should find somewhere on this page, or cut and paste this link into your browser and you can sign up online:
http://tinyurl.com/c524ku
Terms and conditions obviously apply, check them on that link.. I think those are good offers.

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.
The money - real money - is already coming on from my own internet shopping site which is at www.ei42.com/nakedtrader.

In fact I've already made £1,000 - that's in a very short time and as this grows I think there could be a very good income there.

YOU can make money out of this too - by simply doing your online shopping as normal but via your site (it costs nothing) and then tell friends to open their shopping site using the link from yours - you then get commission on their buys!
Have a look at this link:

http://www.ei42.com/Nakedtrader/

So for free you can sign up and get this site for yourself.

Everytime you buy anything yourself on your site you get commission.. So if you normally shop online anyway it's a no brainer: just use your own site instead of going direct and get some commission every time you shop.
Then you just get some friends to sign up and get their own site too - when they do online shopping using their mall, you get commission too. Simple as that.
It's all explained on the site top right.. just click "Make money with your own shop find out more" and it's all explained. Or click here

http://www.ei42.com/?10850514
So you just shop away as normal - but now you earn commission - and there's also decent money off coupons too on top of that!

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
I've had heaps and heaps of praise from many of you regarding The Financial Spreadbetting book.
The book really seems to have helped a lot of you understand spreadbetting a lot more than you did. You say it's really helped you with ideas too. The writer deserves commendation. With the ability to go short so important in these volatile markets, it's a must read. To order click this link... http://books.global-investor.com/books/23307.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

MAY 15TH SOLD OUT!

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 still open for the next Naked Trader seminar on Friday June 26th. Price is £495 plus 15% vat. However there is a large early booking discount available!

That includes three course lunch, Starbucks coffee, parking etc. And most importantly it covers choc bars and fruit gums too.

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 "June 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?

Exclusive One Point Spread, £250 Cashback Offer

Still a massive response coming in for the sensational 1 point indices spread offer plus £250 cash back on losses - my mail box continues to be full of enquires - don't miss out!
I have arranged a deal with a spreadbet company that gives you just ONE POINT spreads on all the major indices and very tight spreads on everything else. A one point spread is just amazing and you can use it on the FTSE, DOW, Nikkei etc...
Not only that, I can offer those of you interested a fantastic £250 cash back on any realised spreadbet losses made within your first 8 weeks. That means you get back any losses up to £250 which could come in extremely handy.
If you'd like the details of this offer just mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "£250 cashback offer" in the subject line. This really is a great offer which will have a limited lifespan so if you want it, get cracking!

. Mf Global Spreads is one of the few companies that offers spreads on smaller companies valued at just £6m or more, including AIM stocks. And you can trade them online too.
So now you CAN deal in small companies without having to actually buy the shares in the market and you can deal in them on margin if you wish.
Every naked trader reader who opens an account with them though me will get a completely free £2 a point bet on the daily FTSE on a day of your choice.
As you can imagine get it right and this free bet could be worth a few quid. The bet cannot be a loser, because if you lose, it is as if you never placed it!

And MF now also offers £100 refund on your first bet if it becomes a loser.
So here is your chance to open an account to spread bet the smaller companies - of course you can deal in the whole range of usual spread betting with them too including the bigger companies and indices bets as well.
To take up what I think is a brilliant offer, simply cut and paste this link into your browser and sign up online:

http://tinyurl.com/c524ku

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 2 spreadbets (non equity).

To get the offer, click here:

http://promo.tradefair.com/nakedtrader100/

Joanna Lumley for Prime Minister.. let's ditch these snivelling politicians and get someone to run the country and make some decisions!
Go Joanna!!! The way she cornered immigration head Phil Woolas was tremendous. Brown said he had no idea rejection letters were going out to Gurkas.
At PMQ's Gordon Brown looked a defeated man. No answers to any questions.
No sense of humour either.
It makes me angry when you see them wasting billions on a stupid ID scheme, and £7 million on a even sillIer flu flyer and they won't even give Gurkas the right to live here.
£7m wasted telling us to use hankies and cover our mouths when we sneeze on what we now know isn't a killer flu. Come on!!!
Not much can be said about the politicians and their expenses claims apart from the fact it's a lot of fun.
It's actually a problem across the country. Expenses have always been seen by most as a chance to bump up salaries. It has always been thus, hasn't it?
I can hardly believe we have to put up with this useless government for another year. Time we joined the US and held elections every 4 years instead of 5.
They've been in power for too long. Time to go.
Poor old Chelsea.What a terrible referee. but surely the time has come now in these top matches to have a third referee like the third umpire in cricket.
The main ref can refer a penalty decision to the third ref who looks at the replay. Wouldn't take more than 30 seconds and the right decision is then made.

Time to get this done - and quickly - and in fact it really ought to be in place for the final.
In such top games, the decisions must be right - you can't have teams winning by default on bad decisions. The third ref here would have easily made the penalty decision - the right decision.
Hurrah! Phillip got fired and not Lorraine!
The best decision so far. Phillip did nothing except flirt with Kate and so sold nothing.
As usual Nick came out with the funniest line of the show. When Phillip proclaimed how brilliant his "Bodyrocka" was in a previous task Nick came up with a one-line putdown.
"So, tell us about Pants Man.." he said, raising one eyebrow very slightly.
Of course the products they picked were the worst possible. The bike bag was always going to be unsellable given your shopping would tilt the bike to one side. The dog lead for lovers was just barking.
Phillip could hardly believe he was fired. A man so in love with himself he just couldn't see how it could be his time to exit.
Meanwhile Lorraine is building up a head of steam. Is it just possible SirA will give her the job just to show he doesn't always go for the good-looking blonde?
If we're half way through The Apprentice it must mean Big Brother can't be far off. I don't think I can bear to sit through another one.

The show has had its time and last year's should have been the last. I liked the celebrity version up to the point when the vote was so obviously rigged.

If you want to bet on sport here's the sign up link, very large free bets for newbies: To open a Sporting account click here:
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.

Rodger writes:
Good to read that you are doing ok in these financial turbulent times.
Take a daily aspirin! They help to avoid heart problems!
Life has thrown me a curve ball. I have just come out of hospital having. I suffered a heart attack and me only 56! Looks like I will make a good recovery and will be able to lead a full life. No particular reason for it. I reckon
I was just one of the 0.5% who are likely to get a heart attack despite all having all the right boxes ticked in the health check list etc. So, now I have 6 - 7 weeks
to get back up to speed and I will be popping a few pills now for the rest of my life. Hey ho.
The time off work will give me a chance to get my portfolio sorted and make some life changing decisions. Life is too short to hang around waiting. So, plans I be a making to do some travelling and see some sights soonerrather than later.

Hi Rodger.
So sorry to hear about the attack at such a young age, it could happen to anyone. I suppose we al ought to imagine the same had happened to us and live each day as well as possible. Life is indeed to short to hang about waiting.
My wife's dad had an attack a couple of years ago at 68 and is living life to the full. And it sounds like you're going to do the same. All the best for seeing the sights and let us know how you get on..

Sue writes:
I hope your voice is recovering and you are feeling better after persevering till late with your epic trading seminar last Friday.

Wow what a day that was! I can't remember the last time I went to an event where my eyes and ears were glued to the presenter for the entire day. Even the graveyard slot wasn't a problem for concentration and that is a real first! Thank you for such an educational, enlightening and inspiring seminar, for sharing your methodology, your tips and your encouragement with passion and great humour.

I found your book a real eye opener, but your seminar has since given me the confidence to take charge of my own investments and armed me with knowledge of the tools to do the job. My heart sank when I read your book and realised that I was guilty of so many of the mistake / loser scenarios in your book. I now see those mistakes as hard earned and costly lessons, but know what I must do to put them behind me so I can move forward, away from my so called advisory broker.

It feels as if I turned a corner on Friday and this is the first week of my new trading life! I wish I had more daytime hours to devote, and will work towards getting some. I setup a virtual portfolio containing one share from each of those on your shortlist. Unbelievably, every one of those stocks finished the day with a change in blue yesterday! You are awesome, thank you.

Thanks Sue - this one is representative of some of the many mails about the event - thanks to all of you who wrote in and I've replied to you all personally. It is really personally rewarding for me.

Ryan writes:
I can confidently say that since your seminar in March, I have become a more relaxed and confident trader! Have made some money too! And I don't have to trade everyday or worry about not sitting in front of the computer screen all day!!!

I am not sure that I can put my finger on exactly what did it for me but it is worth mentioning that part of what was inspiring was that there were no wild claims as to what we were going to gain from the seminar. Just sharing your own experiences (as in the book) was awesome! Many thanks for sharing your trades with us; the day was definitely well worth it. I am still expecting my own commission on the trade you closed out that afternoon! And I would like my own tenner in cash "" no cheques please! By the way, the lunch was also really lovely indeed and thanks for signing my book. I hope all who attend after us would find it as useful and as inspiring as I did
Thanks Ryan and glad it worked for you

Keith writes:

Just finished reading your book, and I must say I enjoyed it immensely .So much so that I am going to read it again immediately to confirm that some of your ideas have stuck . Not only was it a good read , but it also confirmed that I am only doing a few things wrongly , not everything as unplanned as I thought .
One question though if you don't mind , where can I get relevant information regarding Aim listed companies which are moving up to the main market ? I don't seem to be able to find this info so far , and I wonder if you could point me in the right direction ?
Hi Keith..
There's no easy way.. I usually scan news items on advfn at 7am, a move is usually highlighted there - but there are only about 5-10 moves a year!

I have 3 great offers from ADVFN. First great deal: If you want level 2, though me it is only £299 for your first year including VAT!
This compares to £360 PLUS vat from ADVFN direct (£423) so this deal saves you over £100! 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 for only £299 for a year (including vat), or under £25 a month!!

Deal two is ADVFN's bronze subscription - normally £60pa - available from me for only £40! That's a saving of £20! You get 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 talk about in my book and 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.
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.

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 £30 for your first year by paying just £138.06 inc vat via me instead of £167.47.
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!
All deals are just £12.50 with no funny small print. So it's a no lose situation! Follow this link...

http://tinyurl.com/57hp4n

Goodness me and they're still going up!! It's been quite an amazing few weeks and I can hardly believe in the middle of a recession and in May which is supposed to be a rubbish month I've made more money in a shorter space of time than I could do in the old bull market!
It's not so hard buying shares it's the selling of them that's tough!!
Nothing worse than taking a profit too early which is what I do too much of.
The market has come a long way since its lows and it's a question of how high can it go now? I'm sure a lot of investors/traders like me are puzzling over whether this is the start of a new bull run or a bear market rally. I have no idea but as always I'm just happy to go along with some of the ride.
I never get in at the very bottom of a share or sell at the very top - as long as I got some of the ride that's all that matters.
However for right now it would be a little surprising not to see at least a small pullback. However every time I think that, shares rise some more. Quite amazing. I'm tempted to put on a Ftse short.
With some giant profits building up there actually isn't much need for me to be buying much as what I have is making the profits while I put my feet up with tea and toast! However I have spent a couple of days topslicing or taking some profits and it was about time!
I made one little buy. I like it when I see sudden big buys coming into a small stock.
And I noticed this morning a number of large buy trades in Boot H (BHY) - a modest smallcap company that's been hit badly - no surprise. It ended up with trades of around 200,000 shares bought at 78.
I liked the look of such confident buys and I joined in picking up 5,000 shares at 78p. Someone seems keen to get in here.
Interesting that BHY goes ex dividend for nearly 4p on Wednesday, so on Wednesday it should begin the day down about 4p. But if it goes up before then and doesn't go down the full 4p on the day I could already have a nice capital rise plus a very decent dividend in the bag. Target 120 stop 64. Dividend on this one is actually a tasty near 7%!
Right onto a bout of profit-taking, I feel at this point it's only sensible to take a bit off the table.
My short-term trade in British Airways worked a treat! At 12p over target I decided it was time to bank the profits. I'd bought because I thought the swine flu thing was over-hyped and it would quickly recover. And so it has to pre swine levels - but there's a wall of resistance in the early 170s..
So I sold at 171.34 to bank a profit of £421 and at 168 on the spreads to bank a profit of £1,490 - total profit £1,911 - very nice too and a nice short-term profit banked. Good when something goes exactly to plan.
Elsewhere all these profit-takes are mainly quite simply shares that I think are most likely to go down fast in a selloff or shares perhaps I'm more nervous about holding. But I hold onto the main block of the portfolio.
Aveva went at 612.5 for a profit of £301. Ooops. That's much higher now! Wsp went at 247.5 for a profit of £226 and on the spreads at 246 for a profit of £340 . Very disappointing as I could have sold up near 300. Missed that completely after a disappointing statement.
Persimmon went at 400.5 for profit of £615. I topsliced a bit of Galiform at 35.09 for a profit of £919 but hold onto the rest. Seems settled around 35 and still a prospect of a bid makes me keep most of my holding.
I topsliced the Charter trade, taking profit on £20 on the spreads at 618 and leaving a tenner open so that banks a profit of £2,940. Went way over target.
PV Crystalox spreadbet went at 121 for a profit of £800. Looking to buy back in there especially if it goes lower.
So that's a total profit banked for the website of £8,052
Now of course a lot of those I sold could easily soar next week and I could regret it but I really don't mind just being along for part of the ride on these things and sometimes it's a good idea to try and not be too greedy.
However greediness I guess makes me want to hold onto some of the other shares that are making fortunes!
Some really brilliant rises with the doublers and treblers all going well.
Recent topup Carclo goes well, but the question is can it get through the all important 100 barrier? Would be very bullish if it could. Volex holds well at a higher price. Other recent spreadbet buy Topps Tiles goes very well indeed and shows no sign of stopping.
Star of the show, Heritage Oil - continues to perform - now nearly trebled on the first buy and the website buys are now in profit by more than £10,000. No reason to take profits yet on this gusher I think - and although my target of 500 has been reached, on wednesday's statement there could be another 200p there at least.
Some brokers today even estimate 1200. Some say it could be the next Cairn. On that hope I am definitely staying in. I actually hope it will be my next Burren which I rode up from 232p to where it was bid for at 1230 banking £28,000! I have some hefty spreadbets on it too so I am extremely happy!
Barclays and RBS continue to hold up well, trebled on one, doubled on the other. RBS results above expectations today. Not really quite sure how much higher they can go but continuing to hold rather than profit take seems to be paying off.
Dragon Oil has doubled and a bit and keeps heading skywards, can it break that 300 level? Unite has doubled now and a bit and continues to fly. I am wondering about taking some profits before next Friday's statement.. just in case!
Alterian remains on the march upwards. It cracked 100 yesterday but can't quite hold it today. Still looks good though. Chime rings up an excellent profit.
My bid target favourite from the last seminar Microgen is quietly but surely heading back upwards. Longer-term hold BTG gains very well today.
Workspace is nicely higher, and again not long here before a double is reached! The 15.5 seller has gone too.
Recent buy Celsis rises very well today and is touching 200! Bodes well.
Petrofac has surged again to nearly 650 which leaves me 200 pts of profit!
The good times are certainly continuing for now. I guess maybe it could have been foolish to bank a few profits - but I still hold a lot, and at least profits taken are real money in the bank!
Can the markets maintain their rise next week? I await with great interest!
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 2 spreadbets (non equity).

To get the offer, click here:

http://promo.tradefair.com/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 Weds and Fri 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!