Apparent Labour attempt to manipulate market fails

The iPredict market administrator has reported what appears to be the first attempt to manipulate iPredict prices this election campaign.

While only the administrator can know who is trading, the pattern strongly suggests to me that either pro-Labour activists or even the Labour Party itself were behind the effort. 

A Labour connection also seems likely given that the amateur Gordon Gekko clearly had no understanding of how markets work and that such attempts are doomed to failure.  Buying up Goff to a price the rest of the market regards as unrealistic just provides greater profit opportunities for others, which leads to a market correction.

Even better is that the failed attempt to manipulate the market means investors and market observers (including the media and political commentators) can have even more confidence in the pricing of the relevant stocks, which now appear to have settled back at around 90c for John Key and around 10c for Phil Goff.  What we now need is for National activists to get into the game (they will fail too, but their failed attempts will further help improve market accuracy).  

Many thousands of dollars have been traded in the failed manipulation attempt and I sincerely hope this has not come out of Labour's campaign funds.  That's not what people give money to their party for.  No doubt the media will be asking Phil Goff's office and Labour HQ if they knew anything about today's stunt.