www.MAOXIAN.com
Come for the economic insights and financial analysis. Stay for the jpegs of Chinese hotties?
I first came across MaoXian.com after spending a little time at another financial blog, TraderMike.net (tradermike.net). The phrase "MaoXian" apparently means "to take a risk" and at its most basic, MaoXian.com -- a blog run pseudonymously by "Chairman MaoXian" -- spends much of its time discussing developments in Chinese economics and society in addition to serving up analysis and commentary on Etfs, US equities, and the markets in general.
A glance at recent posts is always a good way of getting a sense of
what a blog is up to lately. And such a glance in MaoXian's direction yields
a blog that is as concerned about stocks and market movement as anything
else, though more than willing to engage in conversation about the topic
du jour (as of this writing, the midterm elections of 2006), the odd social
observation (an article on how "men need deep emotional connections with
other men, not just their wives" that MaoXian claims is a vindication of
the guys'-night-out poker game) and, of course, the admittedly "gratuitous
cute chick pic," which tends to consist of comely ladies from the world's
most populous nation.
FIGURE 1: MAOXIAN.COM
Another way of getting a sense of what MaoXian is up to is by looking at the various categories (which, along with the recent posts, are arrayed along the right side of the blog) into which the posts can be divided. Through this lens, "Notable new highs," "Stocks to watch," "Investing," and "China" make up most of the contributions, with a number of posts categorized as "Trading," "Internet/Media," and "Culture" making up the second tier of MaoXian.com's content. Some of the most recent posts as of this writing included several updates on recent "Notable new highs," best and worst weekly sector performance ratings, and observations about the relationship between global resource use and the industrial revolution in India and China. And, of course, there is the forementioned "gratuitous cute chick pic."
LET A THOUSAND POSTS BLOOM!
The earliest posts accessible at MaoXian date from September 2001 and are remarkably MySpace-like. Chronicles of events: the wife gets a facial, Chairman MaoXian sees a movie he doesn't like (a recurrent theme), reflections on the classic "Poverty Sucks" poster with the British gentleman leaning against a Rolls-Royce. The posts are short, slice-of-life offerings with references to business classes he is taking and charts (such as a historical put/call ratio chart) he is watching. As someone who's been blogging since 2003, I've found it interesting when visiting new blogs to look up some of the earliest posts to see how the blog might have changed from its inception to the present. Taking this same approach with MaoXian.com is complicated by the fact that the initial posts come out of nowhere, like headlights appearing through thick fog, almost without context.
A year in, however, and things began to pick up speed. While still a projection of the author, the thoughts, ruminations, and ideas of Chairman MaoXian became increasingly funneled through observations on everything from market contrarianism and market timing. First intimations of a relocation to China came up around mid-2003 (the Chairman and his family moved to China some two years later), and most of the posts after that were simply titled "Random thoughts" -- though many if not most described his daytrading activity and how he wanted his readers to take (or not take) the information.
But it was in 2004 that this aspect of the blog seemed to take off as posts were increasingly coded in the language of serious trading ("ES 45-min. wave count," "Crude oil price targets," "GOOG's first few minutes"). By year's end, the posts were titled with the stock symbols of the equities under discussion. Brass tacks indeed.
This approach continued in 2005, where MaoXian's appreciation of the daily new highs list came into focus. By late 2005, there were more posts categorized as "Notable new highs" than under any other category. It was also in 2005 where the Chairman's style loosened up as chat transcripts and more commentary on the world around trading, investing, and finance became commonplace. By this time, the blog had turned into a combination of the chatty, MySpace-like early years and the "nothing but the trades" posts a few years later -- a development that no doubt helped warm readers to the blog.
There's an argument that MaoXian.com was a much more practical blog years ago when it was firing off "stocks to watch" -- particularly for daytraders -- on a daily basis, and providing a chat forum for those traders always on the lookout for good advice and sound notions about how to become a better trader.
But what the blog might have lost in practical trading gratification, it has gained by becoming a broader, more media-like presence on the Internet, a presence that has an appeal beyond the small, intense galaxy of daytraders. How much of this was by design and how much of it a function of the changing environment the Chairman found himself in is hard to tell. But the overall result is probably a more accessible production and a much more interesting and thorough read.
--David Penn, Technical Writer
www.PINKSHEETS.com
Many is the successful broker who, although currently trading blue chips, got his or her start patrolling the market for over-the-counter stocks known as the "pink sheets," looking to find that elusive three-dollar (or even three-cent) stock primed to go gangbusters.
As you might imagine, three-cent stocks tend not to be the most investment grade of equities, which is one reason why a stock might find itself delisted from the exchanges and making a home for itself in the pink sheets (so-called because the publication in which these stocks were listed was printed on pink paper, not unlike the Financial Times). And because those stocks do not report to the Securities and Exchange Commission as do "listed" or exchange-based stocks, speculation often surrounds them. I get several emails a day from advisory services telling me about the great move in Xyz--a steal at seven cents!--that I just missed, and how I've only got a few days before that seven-cent number goes careening toward the value of a dollar or more.
Part of the lure of pink sheet stocks, obviously, is their low price. Beginning traders, greedy traders, and traders making their way back from ruin are often attracted to the idea of being able to buy 1,000 shares of stock -- even if the shares can be had for some double-digit divisor of a penny each. Another lure is the potential for huge gains should one of these undiscovered, left behind, overlooked, and discounted stocks do well. After all, from an optimistic perspective, there's plenty of room to the upside for a seven-cent stock. Of course, there's nothing stopping a seven-cent stock from becoming a two-cent stock or less.
PINKSHEETS TO THE RESCUE
So if pink sheet stocks represent the wild wild west, then perhaps Pinksheets.com stands for the "Man with no name" who will bring some measure of order to the trading of these most vulnerable, and most dangerous, of stocks. This website calls itself an "electronic quotation and trading system" for over-the-counter (Otc) securities, but at root the website is a database and clearinghouse for unlisted and delisted stocks. Traders, brokers, and the issuers of Otc stocks can all consult Pinksheets.com to find stock quotes and news about pink sheet stocks. The price and volume data noted are end of day, though the website has a subscription-based companion website, OtcQuote.com, from which traders, brokers, and issuers can get real-time quotes and data.
The website is divided into sections: "Quotes and News," "Market Activity," "Company Search," "Otc Guide," "Products and Services," and "About." Within "Quotes and News" (each section is accessible by way of a tab) are options for quote information, latest news, latest company updates, latest financial reports, latest Sec filings, and a Pinksheets.com forum/message board. "Market Activity" contains information about changes to security names, symbols, and venue changes as well as deleted stocks. "Venue changes" refers to stocks that move from the pink sheets to the Otc Bulletin Board, or from there to the Nasdaq, as well as new listings. Trade statistics are also available and note volume leaders and biggest gainers and losers. Most frequently requested stocks can also be listed so that traders, brokers, and issuers can have a sense of which stocks are attracting the most attention.
"Company Search" lets traders, brokers, and stock issuers search for OTC stocks and OTC bonds, as well as ADRs (American Depository Receipts), and banks and trusts.
"OTC Guide" is divided into brokers, issuers of OTC stocks, and investors and traders of OTC stocks. Each section has information geared toward each constituency of the OTC marketplace. The brokers section includes information on who can quote in the pink sheets, FAQs, and a listing of relevant regulatory agencies. For stock issuers, there is information on how to get your stock listed in the pink sheets, how Pinksheets.com works, how to update company information, a directory of service providers, as well as an FAQ. And for investors, there is information explaining what the pink sheets and the OTC market stands for, how to contact a company, explanations about the regulations of pink sheet stocks and how investors are protected and can protect themselves, how to contact securities regulators, how to buy and sell pink sheet stocks, as well as an FAQ about the issues that pink sheet stock investors and traders need to be aware of.
"Products and Services" is similarly subdivided. With a few exceptions the same links to quotation services, transaction services, OTC research services, and third-party data redistributors/products appear on each subdivided page. The final tab, "About," provides website visitors with basic information and history about the OTC stock world, as well as information about Pinksheets.com itself. News releases are archived here also, as well as a larger and more generalized FAQ section, and contact information.
POWER TO THE PINK
One of the biggest problems about pink sheet stocks is the relative paucity of data, trading volume, and the ability to chart. While many stocks, despite their puny price tags, still trade with enough volume to establish clear trends, breakouts, and consolidations, a healthy number, to put it bluntly, don't. To that end, a website like this one can be helpful not just in locating obscure rules governing disclosure of OTC stocks, but also in helping investors and traders locate up-to-date information. It's not too far to say that if the wild west of OTC stocks is ever "won" by the average retail trader, he or she will have the long riders and sharpshooters of Pinksheets.com to thank for it.
--David Penn, Technical Writer
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