IN times of strife, when investors all around appear to be losing their heads, institutions normally head for utility stocks.
These are regarded as the ''Steady Eddie'' shares with predictable strong, regular fundamental earnings growth.
It is for this reason they are regarded as boring also-rans in the Hang Seng Index.
During last year's liquidity boom the sector got left behind in the rush for property development profits, and selected conglomerates and banks.
This could be changing and utilities might yet have their day in the sun, given the current uncertainty on world equity markets and the anticipated worsening in Sino-British relations.
With the reporting season getting under way over the next few weeks it seems institutional investors might be looking more closely at the corporate prospects of key Hang Seng index constituents.
