One of Sharetrack 100's veterans is this week's winner and £1,000 better off. Mr Charles Kingston, a weekly winner last year and the year before, saw his Iridium portfolio increase by the greatest percentage - 11.81 per cent - on the week to clinch the weekly prize. He also receives one year's commission-free share dealing through goodbody Stockbrokers.
Mr Kingston has Bula to thank for his success with Iridium. "I had a good stroke of luck going into Bula this week," he said.
"In the case of Bula, I figured if the UN decided to lift its sanctions against Iraq, this would benefit the company."
An in-depth knowledge of international markets also helped the consultant and investor from Sandymount.
"As an international consultant and investor, I look at political situations that could have an effect on stocks. A small stock like Bula, dependent on natural resources, can post a disproportionately higher return if a big market is opened," he said.
The UN decision affected the sentiment for Bula in the market, he added.
"The stock was very weak recently. It is always liable to have a sudden reversal and in a game like this you can take more risks. It's a sprint, not a marathon," he said.
Fyffes and JP Morgan form the core holdings of the portfolio.
"I think Fyffes has shown a lot of resilience of late," Mr Kingston said.
Other stocks include retailer GUS and AOL.
"The retail sector is still holding strong and it is fairly stable when you compare it to tech stocks," he added.
"A certain amount of volatility is useful in this game. The tech sector has given enough volatility and there could be further shocks ahead. I wouldn't be getting complacent about staying in techs at this stage."
Iridium is now 48th overall and is one of three portfolios Mr Kingston has in the top 50. His Orpheus portfolio is at number 41, while his Neptune portfolio has climbed to fifth spot overall.
After three weeks, some names in the overall leaderboard are beginning to look familiar. Mr Bill Dowling's More Chips portfolio leads the pack with a value of 1,649,237.
Mr Dowling from Artane also attributes his success to having Bula as one of his stocks.
"I bought in Bula and it rose by 17 per cent and took my portfolio up by a value of 150,000," he said. Mr Gerry Byrne, whose Last Minute portfolio was ranked number four last week, is now in second place with his Lucky Pick portfolio. Tony's Tips No. 2, managed by Mr Tony McIntyre, has gained two places to number three from number five last week. Another of Mr McIntyre's teams, Tony's Picks, is ranked seventh, while our first week's winner, Mr Brian O'Keefe, is just outside the top 10 with Liquidity Crisis.
An overall first prize of £15,000 will be awarded to the person whose portfolio has the highest balance at 5.30 p.m. on Friday, July 6th. Second prize will be £7,000 and third prize £3,000.
