Read intro here.
Affected companies were up, down, and sideways at the end of last week. It is not because I brilliantly predicted how markets would react to the Trump measures that I am posting this as my first weekly blog–because the POTUS is totally unpredictable and has a small attention span (as well as small hands). I am posting this widely because my paid subscribers reacted with more enthusiasm to my Friday blog than ones earlier in the week.
Readers should be careful buying small cap foreign stocks on which we report here, because we already own them. These pink sheet American Depository Receipts are often traded at huge spreads. The best way to buy is using a limit good-till-cancel order somewhere between the bid/asl, or where possible only trade when the foreign market is open.
*Many buys over the past few days have not been executed because of my panic late Thursday (after my issue went out) over the measures being threatened in Washington. But I did buy back Barrick Gold (ABX) common at $17.77 on Jan. 25. ABX is a way to cover systemic risks from stocks and bonds, be it inflation or incoherence, by using gold. Its global business, and low costs of production and all-in-costs make this Canadian gold major a safer bet than smaller, seemingly cheaper miners.
*I also bought more Greencore Group, GNCGF, at $2.83. The Irish food processor (whose primary listing is in London) was hit by Tesco buying a wholesaler and concern about Irish ability to continue retail spending as Britain starts competing with Ireland as an on-shore tax haven. Neither of these worries is correct about Greencore but the UK stock market is aiming at movable targets. Worries about US consumption of ready meals under its takeover of Peacock Foods here are probably wrong because in the small cap universe, mergers are very carefully planned. It may also be down because of below-consensus results at its oldest US outlet for ready meals, Starbucks (SBUX).
*More about trades not completed in funds.
IT
*Renishaw (RNSHF), the UK laser metrology firm reported operating profits up by a third from its core business yesterday. Its ADR remains flat with a huge bid-ask spread despite its gaining coverage from a first US brokerage, Morgan Stanley. Watch this one, and buy if it loses altitude, writes Martin Ferera.
