THE ordinary English alphabet isn't sophisticated enough for some stockbrokers to express their Great Thoughts on the Hong Kong market.
Smith New Court has been writing to clients this week telling them it's invented two more symbols . . .
. . . plus a four-tier structure covering action recommendations, underlying performance preferences and a number of other factors.
Don't look for the words buy or sell, though. They're only being used as an 'immediate action statement' and do not appear in every report.
Actually this is rather smart, because some fund managers see the word buy and immediately toss the report into a pile labelled Things to Do When the Airport is Finished.
The folks at Smith New Court are in good company in this respect. Seapower Securities, originator of the utterly baffling 'Gentle Buy' recommendation, uses the following symbols for outperform, underperform, and perform with the market: But why stop there? We look forward to the day when stockbrokers' reports start looking like pocket restaurant guides. A brokers' report might look like this: Translation: the chairman is a second-hand car dealer who has attracted a certain amount of regulatory attention.