Santa loses goodies down chimney as Obama gifts market with rise

Signs of a rebound in Chinese manufacturing conditions buoyed local shareholders, and the S&P/ASX 200 index finished up 1.5 per cent, led by the miners.

Things got really technical for resident chartist Richard Pritchard. He defied the upbeat market to lose 2.7 per cent of his portfolio, which bumped him from first to fourth. His two hero stocks from week one turned villain  Strategic Energy and Blackwood Corp tanked.

Reader Angela Smith gleefully scooped up the ball fumbled by Richard to take first place. Angela lost a few bucks, but not enough to erase her advantage. She was saved by an 11 per cent surge in Decmil Group.

Contract manager David Peda had a reasonable week, enough to propel him to second spot, trailing the leader by less than a hundred bucks.

The hottest performer of the week was the ever-flashy Doreen Daze, who claims third spot after doubling the markets weekly return, thanks to a rebounding Lynas Corp.

Santas portfolio fell faster than a fat man down a chimney, which admittedly isnt that fast.

Speaking of which, if youve ever wondered what a herd of Santas would look like moving en masse in a seaside setting (who hasnt?), get along to the Variety Newcastle Santa Fun Run this morning, starting at 10am sharp.

Registration is from 8am to 9.30am. Its sure to be quite the spectacle.