This week thousands of parents (of whom I'm one) will find out what school their 10 and 11 year olds will be heading off to in September. The whole business of choosing schools has struck me as sharing a lot in common with the business of investing in shares. Some candidates have to be rejected out of hand because the headteachers and the product they are selling are pretty rubbish, with no hope of a return, and the analyst, called Ofsted, agrees. Then at the other end of the spectrum, there are schools which are akin to growth stocks in that they do at least hold the promise of decent returns although you might have to wait. The trouble is they cost an arm and a leg. Then there are brand new untested schools for parents willing to take a risk. Luckily the schools market also offers some utter gems and true bargains - and the trick is to spot them early. At the IC, we regularly hunt for share bargains, and this week Algy Hall has been scouring the market for the investment trusts offering the most enticing discounts and which look cheap based on their z-score measures. The discounts that trusts often trade on are one of the big attractions of the sector for its fans. Although there's a risk that the discount could widen further rather than narrow, in many cases buyers of the shares really are getting something for nothing. Algy reviews the candidates which include recovery plays and high risk exposure to Greece. Elsewhere Martin Li reports on how Hummingbird Resources has added substantial gold ounces near its existing discovery in Liberia, and on the latest news from Petra Diamonds while the Trader delivers his daily verdict on the market.
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