I guess we've not been reading in the same circles jnycat. I wasn't aware of any these high "lease" rates....by which I assume you mean borrowed shares, which implies that the shorts are not "naked"..."naked" means that shares are sold and the shares are not borrowed.
We know that when shares are borrowed to short, they show up in the short report which GWR reports to us twice per month on the 15 and end of month. This number stands at around 3 million, and seems a resonable number. This doesn't bother me as I look around to other companies in the past that I thought might be shorted.
I held a lot of First Majestic several months ago when it traded as low as three dollars. I often felt that it must be manipulated to trade at so low a price, but then, one great earnings report and BANG, it was off. There was certainly a short covering scramble to get out ASAP, and then it hit $10, $15, $20, before settling at current $17.
Are "certain" companies "suppressed more than others? Maybe just the ones with rather dismal looking balance sheets and lots of shares outstanding...ECU has been talked about rather a lot in those terms on respectable bulletin boards as well as less respectable ones like SH...which is why I take a longer term view.
When respected people bemoan the shorting, and the "naked" shorting, and the manipulation, and the low share price, day in and day out, it creates a negative outlook in the short-term. Who on this board has not thought of taking some money off the table in the last 6 month while reading these "reports" and opinions.???
With ECU's 360 million shares, I'm certain that there has been lots of capitulation lately...causing a heavy share price, but I'm equally certain that when silver rises up to some point in the future (I don't know where that will be - 60, 80, 100...whatever) that ECU will one day be profitable. It is at this point that the greatest leverage will apply, the shorts will scramble for cover, like in 2005...
...and the moaning will finally stop. jmho.
lotus petals,
gildage
