Soaring Portfolio Strong Markets

I really did get 2005 all wrong. At the beginning of the year I thought things would turn sour, and that the FTSE and other shares would slump. But now it's September and I've recorded the biggest gains I've ever achieved.

A friend of mine had a similar view to me at the start of the year - he was all gloom and doom. But he stuck by his view and basically felt that he couldn't invest much in shares because he was convinced the market was in for a sharp fall.

However, I took a different view: I have always tried to follow the market trend - not tried to guess it. So although I was doom and gloom, it didn't stop me from fully investing in shares simply because the market was trending up. By following the trend rather than going against it, I've made a lot of money this year. My friend hasn't. Every time I bought something he said: "I can't! I think the market's going down..."

What I'm trying to say is: always be a trend follower, not a trend setter. You will never get out at the top or get in at the bottom, but as long as you can ride some of the trend you should make money. Of course, there has been a certain element of luck this year: I didn't know the oil price was going to soar, but I followed the trending up of oil price and it paid off.

My two biggest gainers of the year are both oil stocks: Burren Energy and Dragon Oil. At some point, I have no doubt the oil trend will change downwards - I will then sell. I won't sell at the top but I'll be selling with giant profits even if I miss a few points. I also like Emerald Energy and Aminex.

Talking of Dragon Oil, I give full marks to Barclays stockbrokers for bowing quickly to pressure from ADVFN viewers, and myself, in changing its decision that Dragon Oil was not allowed to be held in an ISA. I both rang and wrote to Barclays saying there was no valid reason why Dragon Oil should be disallowed in ISAs. They explained that this was because it was also traded in Ireland. However, when I said that the tax rules clearly stated that Dragon Oil was allowable, and then followed this up by sending them angry posts from ADVFN's Dragon Oil bulletin board thread, they reversed the decision!

So well done to the posters, and well done to Barclays for quickly, and correctly, changing their minds. Let's face it - you rarely get satisfaction from big companies, so Barclays deserves a pat on the back for listening to its customers on this occasion.

My portfolio continues to soar thanks to the strong market. Last week I saw some excellent gains from Brammer, Vanco, Rotork, and CSR - all trending higher, and I will remain with them all while the trend continues!