* PURE SPECULATION: Robin Bromby * From: The Australian *...

* PURE SPECULATION: Robin Bromby
* From: The Australian
* January 03, 2011 12:00AM

Test your metal

SO far, anyway, metals seem to be going in only one direction, with copper on Friday hitting yet another record high. Palladium averaged $US263 an ounce in 2009; it closed on Friday at $US803/oz. Potash and uranium got their skates on, while tin showed the other base metals how it is done. Zinc and lead languished, but their run is probably a year or two away.

Tony Locantro quit Patersons Securities back in November and is now putting together his $4 million LAM Speculative Fund. He sums up the market scene thus: "Still some fantastic value around but the herd mentality is alive and well, so reality checks (are) not that far off."

He thinks the hot money this month will be looking for the next big thing, and that may be shale gas. Of course, your average speculator loves to trawl through the bargain basement and Locantro has a number of "strong buy" tags that are under 20c (and many under 10c). They include oil and gas play Adelaide Energy (ADE), Atlantic Gold (ATV) which had an underwhelming 2010; China Yunnan Copper Australia (CYU) with its large portfolio; Clancy Exploration (CLY) with its NSW and Tasmanian prospects; Eromanga Hydrocarbons (ERH), which is drilling for oil in the US and Brazil; Mongolia potash explorer General Mining (GMM); and Panax Geothermal (PAX).