Bhoona Lamb, Anyone?

Today the BBC News website has a story about a naughty butcher.  He has avoided being sent to jail even though he used Y-front underpants as wiping cloths in his shop.  Well, he's got to use something to wipe his slabs etc, hasn't he?  And provided the underpants were well laundered I can't see much wrong with using them for this task. Wouldn't mind betting that wiping down the meat counter is a lot more hygienic that much of what goes on in most underpants in daily use. What do you think?

It's That Man Again!

Today I woke to the news that Prince Charles is fulminating against the pensions industry.  Good to know that I have something in common with the heir to the UK throne!  His outburst is reported in the "Daily Mail", one of the organs of the British press that comes (fairly) close to being a real newspaper.  You can read the article on-line for free so I won't weary you by quoting it here.  You can also read it on-line in the "Times", which is a real newspaper - but you'll have to pay for the privilege.

I noticed one particular phrase, though.  The Prince, who will be 65 next month, says "the pensions industry is unfit for purpose"  Well now, that depends on what he thinks its purpose is!  He means, I guess, that the industry doesn't provide us (you, me, Princes etc) with adequate pensions when we reach retirement age.  The industry thinks its purpose is to screw as much money as it can out of its unsuspecting and financially ignorant customers during their working lives and to hand them much less than they were expecting when they do retire.  Fund managers have to behave this way, or how would they afford to pay themselves 7 figure salaries, buy their Porsches, yachts, second homes in France, pay to join the right golf clubs and order their pinot noir a dozen crates at a time.

Wake up folks!  The pensions industry does not exist to make money for you.  It exists to make money for itself.  Schimples.

(Like his Dad, isn't he!!?)

November Comes Early

Hello, People!  When trading options in the FTSE 100 Index I don't use guesswork, crystal balls, goat entrails, tea leaves or the stars.  I use a set of Rules.  I won't bore you by explaining and/or justifying them except to say - my Rules do not use the past to predict the future. If this were possible there would be no Stock Market and there would certainly be no such activity as "derivative trading" i.e trading options and futures. I'll leave you to work out why.  No, my Rules serve two purposes. They tell me when it's time to trade. They stop me having to think. They have been very successful and have enriched me considerably over the years.

And yesterday, October 1st, my Rules told me "Doctor, 'tis time to redeem your October position and open November."  The diligent reader will remember that I opened my October position as recently as 10th. September, so that was quick, eh? A phone call to the brokers and I, or rather he on my behalf "bought to close" 7 x 6150 October Puts and 7 x 6750 October Calls, and "sold to open" 8 x 6050 November Puts and 8 x 6700 November Calls.  Note that this trade widened the "spread" between the November Put and Call strikes by 50 points over the October spread.  The whole trade bolstered cash at the bank by £2785.00. This is not profit unless/until the November contracts expire with the FTSE 100 Index between the Put and Call levels at 10.30 a.m on 15th. November. The trade resulted in a net profit on the October options of £3577.00

One day I shall fall flat on my face and you can all larf and say "When it sounds to good to be true it probably is."