Hot copper: how day traders fuelled a $1bn frenzy.

Byline: Neil Chenoweth

Oct 12, 2006 (The Australian Financial Review - ABIX via COMTEX) -- In just half an hour on 5 July 2006, $A51 million worth of Cudeco stock was traded on the Australian Stock Exchange. A buy order for 5,000 shares in the junior copper play, then still known as Australian Mining Investments, was matched with four sellers, two at $A10 a share. This sparked a day-trader frenzy, which ended at 10.58am when trading in Cudeco shares was suspended. None of this was accidental. Aggressive buying by Cudeco's sponsoring broker, Aequs Securities, and a