Contrarian Miner is down 4% today, to £131,550. Whilst it is never that much fun to watch £5,000 disappear overnight, the portfolio is down just 1% since I last posted on 20th April against the FTSE350 Mining Index down 11% so I am feeling OK. Portfolio performance has been helped by the fact that 15% of the portfolio was in cash when I last posted, as well as good performance from some of the gold stocks – Roxgold +15%, Caledonia Mining +11% and Goldcorp +9%.

I have taken advantage of today’s market weakness to top up two existing holdings, buying:

• 1250 Tullow at 247p (down 12% today)
• 1500 Maurel et Prom at €3.12 (down 3% today)

Both are holdings I have been wanting to add to, but in the case of Tullow I thought I had missed the boat as it has been so strong. With Tullow off 12% today I got a chance.

That still leaves me with £12,770 in cash, and while I have a few ideas for it I am trying to sit on my hands. Itchy fingers also keep wanting to sell Roxgold (up 98% from where I bought it) but I tell them no – gold has broken out of downward trend and could do almost anything.