Day traders' New Year's lounge Dec 31 - Jan 3

Farewell, then, 2021. Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Welcome, 2022. Boy, are we glad to see you.

Whatever the new year brings has to be an improvement on a year of lockdowns, closed borders and interstate antipathies. I miss Australia as a unified nation, rather than mate versus mate.

Best of the season to all who look in over the holiday. Enjoy the break. Hope your trading provided something nice to pop at midnight.

Today's market action: "ASX Close: Memorable year ends with final-session retreat"

In this report:

· Santa rally stutters

· End-of-year figures

· Gold miners shine

· Microcaps outperform big end