As of Monday, June 8, THE Inquirer's Business Stock Market Challenge has begun.

There are seven players selected to play the game. They more or less represent a good cross section of the various interests that make up the world of investments, particularly the stock market.

They are not necessarily the best among those who responded to the dare. That is why the chore of selecting the seven players among the candidates was not that easy, not to mention the big turnout.

The "Magnificent Seven"

There were those who have higher and/or more appropriate educational background, more impressive past or present careers, interesting exposure to other disciplines potentially useful to stock trading and investment, and possibly a good batting average in their actual stock market trading and investment performance, as they claimed.

Then, there were those who were very articulate as to be persuasive even in just reading their applications. Some were even more socially personable as they seem to appear from their written communication.

But our "Magnificent Seven" ended up being selected by what they projected to the imagination in their responses to the questions asked. They exuded aggressiveness out of plain confidence. They displayed pure will to dare challenge their own talent and skill in the face of potential embarrassment with the least lack of feeling of disgrace as compared to the majority, who were more concerned with their being found out to have failed.

As it is said, "Success comes to those who dare and act, it seldom goes to the timid who are afraid of the consequences."

Who they are

First, but not necessarily the leader of the pack, is "The Oracle." He is an OFW! A graduate in mechanical engineering, employed as service manager in a car dealership somewhere in the heart of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to support his growing family in Cavite at age 44.

In between his watch in the dealership and time out to communicate with his family in that desert region, sacrificing extra hours for rest considering the time difference with the Philippines, he dabbles in Philippine stocks, among other capital markets, to grow his earnings.

He is a graduate of what I thought was a hospital down south of Manila, the Perpetual Help University. Like any dreamer and crusader for the good life, he pines to be one day like the "Oracle of Omaha."

Second, because of her consuming aspiration to also enjoy the good life like "The Oracle," very young and highly educated but already consigned to the apostolic mission as plain housewife, is the QB Trader.

When asked about the reason behind such trading name, her answer told everything about herself-"No reason behind the name. It reveals nothing about me."

Turning 26 this year, she lives with her husband at the edge of the province of Bulacan. She holds a degree in Bachelor of Arts, Major in Interdisciplinary Studies. She has no previous trading experience in the stock market but her husband is actively into it.

Third is "Trader28." She shares the same school as QB Trader, where the priest running the school has persisted to teach that the color of the eagle is blue. She finished AB Economics under the "Honors Program" of that school.

Single at 23 years of age, she still possibly lives with her parents near the public high school where I finished my secondary education in Quezon City.

She works with a foreign universal bank as management associate, with barely over a year of employment. Confident and highly driven, she has an equal length of experience trading stocks online. To capture her trading performance in the many words she has described her experience, "it's awesome!"

Since she is an ardent fan of the "Oracle of Omaha," The Oracle is not the only aspirant to the crown of Warren Buffet, for Trader28 says, "I created 'micro-portfolios' of various risks and strategies-from low risk to aggressive, subject to my income and performance of previous investments. I read commentaries on Warren Buffet stock strategies, and I dream to be like him someday-but with a twist-a female, young and Filipino."

As if there is any magic added, her birthday falls on the 28th, thus, her adopted trading name.

We'll complete the introduction of the "Magnificent Seven" of the first Inquirer Business Stock Trading Challenge in the next article.

Bottom line spin

Unaffected and as if impervious to the precipitous streak of the market, the Philippine Stock Exchange index climbed another 139.39 points to 2,389.31 last week. This was almost double the gain the week before.

Again, what gives? Markets affecting us are still hurting. Wall Street and other markets the world over have been trading only on the basis of "lesser losses than expected" performance, which actually means that the recession in the US and the developed world is still far from over.

But excess liquidity has continued to sustain the local market climb. As of last Friday, there was still no indication that market liquidity will be drying up very soon. It could still push stocks higher so that trading advisory for the week remains as "Trading buy on market pullbacks." I would suggest, however, that you must now have to adopt tighter trailing stops to protect paper profits or avoid losses from sudden correction.

(You may reach the Market Rider at marketrider@inquirer.com.ph or directly at densomera@yahoo.com)