Scores of Japanese college students have been obsessing over sales of toothpaste, diapers and chocolate. They have visited supermarkets and drugstores to photograph shelves, scrutinize price tags and note which brands sit at eye level for maximum exposure.
This was all part of a competition backed by BlackRock?and Point72 Asset Management to test whether the students have what it takes to work in finance by analyzing three consumer products companies.
¡°I saw a lot of new talent coming in that didn¡¯t have the experience or the skill set to be on par with a lot of the global funds,¡± said Hironobu Katoh, a former Point72 portfolio manager who started the Gyoseki contest after a nearly 20-year career.
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