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Uranium play takes AIM

Kazakhstan-based UrAsia Energy will look to capitalise on City enthusiasm for uranium projects with a listing on AIM later this month. Already quoted in Toronto, the group operates a uranium mine in Kazakhstan and holds exploration licences in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, and its £610 million market capitalisation will make it the biggest uranium mining company on AIM. Broker Canaccord Adams is handling the listing, which will increase the group's profile at a time when uranium prices are close to record levels.

Meanwhile Canadian luxury resort developer Newfound is coming to market by way of a reverse takeover of AIM shell Nettec. Headed by Canadian entrepreneur Brian Dobbin, the company is developing the 2,200-acre Humber Valley luxury resort by the Humber River and Deer Lake in Newfoundland, and hopes to raise £10 million of new money with the help of broker Collins Stewart for an £80 million debut AIM price tag.

And Consolidated Vending, the owner of photo-booth concern Snap Digital Imaging - the main rival of Photo-Me International - will also seek an AIM quote over the coming months in order to consolidate the vending machine market.

This week

Best of the Best, the company that gives travellers to UK airport lounges the opportunity to win luxury cars through on-site competitions, enjoyed a decent debut on Monday, with the shares clipping higher from a placing price of 63p to 67.5p. The profitable concern, founded by chief executive William Hindmarch in 1999 and which began trading at Heathrow's Terminal 4, managed to raise £2.5 million of fresh cash in a Charles Stanley-sponsored float. BAA retains a stake post float and the company has expanded into eight BAA airports.

Torex Retail, the supplier of IT solutions to retailers, lit up the results scene today with a 130 per cent profits surge for the half to June, ahead of expectations, on sales lifted 151 per cent to £132 million. Nevertheless shares in the acquisitive company, which boasts a slew of well-known clients ranging from Punch Taverns to Tesco, slipped 4p south to 57.5p.

On the results front this week, watch out for final figures to the end of May from IT systems specialist Maxima on Thursday. In the wake of a bullish trading update issued in June, analysts are looking for a 211 per cent profits spike to £3.22 million on £20.1 million turnover, representing top-line growth of 150 per cent.

On the same day annual numbers to May are also due from Surface Transforms, the maker of high tech carbon ceramic materials for braking systems. Last year the group reported pre-tax losses of £680,000 on turnover of £260,000 and this time out, the market expects the losses to have continued, with sales forecast to have fallen by 23 per cent to £200,000.