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Timing is everything

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Fundamentals remain the same for Olympic swimmer Arthur Li, who moves with the flow of the Hang Seng Index these days

Arthur Li Kai-yien knows all about timing. Eight years after retiring from international competition as one of the most successful male swimmers ever to compete in Hong Kong, the word 'timing' has suddenly become his best friend again.

As a competitive swimmer who used to train for more than five hours a day trying to perfect a seemingly perfect swimming stroke, Li knows all too well that timing is everything and never more so than in his chosen profession today.

Exploding out of the starting blocks at the buzzer is critical in any race. Like in his swimming days, Li has to get his timing right as senior sales manager at Phillip Securities.

The Hang Seng Index, the barometer of the Hong Kong stock exchange, is what drives Li to work when the market opens five days a week. It gives the former swimmer a buzz every time his clients' portfolios return a healthy profit or whenever he sees stock prices in 'green territory'.

Until the stunning falls of the past fortnight, the past two years have been good times for Li, if the Hang Seng Index is anything to go by. With more funds having poured into the market, Hong Kong has enjoyed a revival not seen since 1997. State-owned companies or H shares listed on the Hong Kong exchange continue to scale new peaks driven by strong fund flows.

Li said it was exciting to be part of the market now. 'I'm happy with my job,' he said. 'As long as my clients are happy and their investments are giving them a return, then I am pleased.

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