diff --git a/tests/test_signal_processing.py b/tests/test_signal_processing.py
index 92520a8d1..705c81183 100644
--- a/tests/test_signal_processing.py
+++ b/tests/test_signal_processing.py
@@ -10,7 +10,13 @@ to it.
 
 import pytest
 
-from tradingagents.agents.utils.rating import RATINGS_5_TIER, parse_rating
+from tradingagents.agents.utils.rating import (
+    RATING_REVIEW,
+    RATINGS_5_TIER,
+    extract_rating,
+    is_review,
+    parse_rating,
+)
 from tradingagents.graph.signal_processing import SignalProcessor
 
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -84,6 +90,51 @@ class TestSignalProcessor:
         llm.invoke.assert_not_called()
         llm.with_structured_output.assert_not_called()
 
-    def test_default_when_no_rating_present(self):
+    def test_unparseable_signal_is_review_not_silent_hold(self):
+        # #1170: an unrecognizable decision must surface REVIEW, not a fabricated
+        # tradeable Hold.
         sp = SignalProcessor()
-        assert sp.process_signal("Plain prose without a recommendation.") == "Hold"
+        signal = sp.process_signal("Plain prose without a recommendation.")
+        assert signal == RATING_REVIEW
+        assert is_review(signal)
+        assert signal not in RATINGS_5_TIER
+
+    def test_fullwidth_colon_is_parsed_not_reviewed(self):
+        # #1170: `Rating：Overweight` (fullwidth colon) used to defeat the regex
+        # and silently become Hold; NFKC normalization now parses it.
+        sp = SignalProcessor()
+        assert sp.process_signal("Rating：Overweight\n理由はこちら。") == "Overweight"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+class TestExtractRating:
+    def test_returns_none_when_absent(self):
+        assert extract_rating("No directional call here.") is None
+        assert extract_rating("") is None
+
+    def test_whole_word_only(self):
+        # substrings inside larger words must not match
+        assert extract_rating("The buyer was holding shares.") is None
+
+    def test_parse_rating_keeps_silent_default_for_compat(self):
+        # parse_rating (used by the memory log) intentionally keeps Hold default.
+        assert parse_rating("No rating here.") == "Hold"
+        assert parse_rating("No rating here.", default="Underweight") == "Underweight"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+class TestGraphSignalContract:
+    """The graph-facing signal (TradingAgentsGraph.process_signal) honors the
+    documented "5-tier or REVIEW" contract, not just the parser in isolation."""
+
+    def _bare_graph(self):
+        from tradingagents.graph.trading_graph import TradingAgentsGraph
+        g = object.__new__(TradingAgentsGraph)
+        g.signal_processor = SignalProcessor()
+        return g
+
+    def test_graph_surfaces_review(self):
+        assert self._bare_graph().process_signal("no rating in here") == RATING_REVIEW
+
+    def test_graph_returns_rating(self):
+        assert self._bare_graph().process_signal("**Rating**: Sell") == "Sell"
diff --git a/tradingagents/agents/utils/rating.py b/tradingagents/agents/utils/rating.py
index 234bc568d..1a828ea21 100644
--- a/tradingagents/agents/utils/rating.py
+++ b/tradingagents/agents/utils/rating.py
@@ -7,42 +7,77 @@ The same five-tier scale (Buy, Overweight, Hold, Underweight, Sell) is used by:
 - The memory log (rating tag stored alongside each decision entry)
 
 Centralising it here avoids drift between those call sites.
+
+``extract_rating`` returns ``None`` when no rating can be found, so the graph can
+surface an explicit ``REVIEW`` signal instead of a fabricated ``Hold`` (#1170).
+``parse_rating`` keeps the legacy silent-default behaviour for callers (e.g. the
+memory log) that need a rating string regardless.
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
 
 import re
+import unicodedata
 
 # Canonical, ordered 5-tier scale (most bullish to most bearish).
 RATINGS_5_TIER: tuple[str, ...] = (
     "Buy", "Overweight", "Hold", "Underweight", "Sell",
 )
 
+# Signal emitted when the model's decision has no recognizable rating. It is not
+# a tradeable position: it flags output that needs a human/re-run rather than
+# silently degrading to Hold. Callers that map the signal onto the 5-tier enum
+# (e.g. ``PortfolioRating(signal)``) should guard with ``is_review`` first.
+RATING_REVIEW = "REVIEW"
+
 _RATING_SET = {r.lower() for r in RATINGS_5_TIER}
 
 # Matches "Rating: X" / "rating - X" / "Rating: **X**" — tolerates markdown
 # bold wrappers and either a colon or hyphen separator.
 _RATING_LABEL_RE = re.compile(r"rating.*?[:\-][\s*]*(\w+)", re.IGNORECASE)
 
+# Standalone 5-tier word anywhere (word boundaries so "Buyer"/"Holding" don't match).
+_RATING_WORD_RE = re.compile(
+    r"\b(" + "|".join(RATINGS_5_TIER) + r")\b", re.IGNORECASE
+)
 
-def parse_rating(text: str, default: str = "Hold") -> str:
-    """Heuristically extract a 5-tier rating from prose text.
 
-    Two-pass strategy:
-    1. Look for an explicit "Rating: X" label (tolerant of markdown bold).
-    2. Fall back to the first 5-tier rating word found anywhere in the text.
+def extract_rating(text: str) -> str | None:
+    """Extract a 5-tier rating from prose, or ``None`` if none is present.
 
-    Returns a Title-cased rating string, or ``default`` if no rating word appears.
+    Two-pass strategy on the NFKC-normalized text (so fullwidth punctuation like
+    ``Rating：Overweight`` is matched the same as ASCII):
+    1. An explicit "Rating: X" label (tolerant of markdown bold).
+    2. The first standalone 5-tier rating word found anywhere.
     """
-    for line in text.splitlines():
+    if not text:
+        return None
+    norm = unicodedata.normalize("NFKC", text)
+
+    for line in norm.splitlines():
         m = _RATING_LABEL_RE.search(line)
         if m and m.group(1).lower() in _RATING_SET:
             return m.group(1).capitalize()
 
-    for line in text.splitlines():
-        for word in line.lower().split():
-            clean = word.strip("*:.,")
-            if clean in _RATING_SET:
-                return clean.capitalize()
+    m = _RATING_WORD_RE.search(norm)
+    if m:
+        return m.group(1).capitalize()
 
-    return default
+    return None
+
+
+def parse_rating(text: str, default: str = "Hold") -> str:
+    """Extract a 5-tier rating, falling back to ``default`` when none is found.
+
+    Legacy convenience wrapper: it always returns a rating string, so an
+    unparseable decision silently becomes ``default`` (``Hold``). Callers that
+    must distinguish "no rating" from a real Hold should use
+    :func:`extract_rating` (or the graph's REVIEW-surfacing signal) instead.
+    """
+    rating = extract_rating(text)
+    return rating if rating is not None else default
+
+
+def is_review(signal: str) -> bool:
+    """Whether a signal is the non-tradeable REVIEW sentinel (#1170)."""
+    return signal == RATING_REVIEW
diff --git a/tradingagents/graph/signal_processing.py b/tradingagents/graph/signal_processing.py
index 90fafd04b..09b43f6bb 100644
--- a/tradingagents/graph/signal_processing.py
+++ b/tradingagents/graph/signal_processing.py
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 
 from typing import Any
 
-from tradingagents.agents.utils.rating import parse_rating
+from tradingagents.agents.utils.rating import RATING_REVIEW, extract_rating
 
 
 class SignalProcessor:
@@ -27,5 +27,12 @@ class SignalProcessor:
         self.quick_thinking_llm = quick_thinking_llm
 
     def process_signal(self, full_signal: str) -> str:
-        """Return one of Buy / Overweight / Hold / Underweight / Sell."""
-        return parse_rating(full_signal)
+        """Return one of Buy / Overweight / Hold / Underweight / Sell, or REVIEW.
+
+        An unrecognizable decision yields ``REVIEW`` rather than a fabricated
+        ``Hold``, so a parsing failure is visible instead of masquerading as a
+        tradeable neutral signal (#1170). Consumers that map the result onto the
+        5-tier enum should guard with :func:`~tradingagents.agents.utils.rating.is_review`.
+        """
+        rating = extract_rating(full_signal)
+        return rating if rating is not None else RATING_REVIEW
diff --git a/tradingagents/graph/trading_graph.py b/tradingagents/graph/trading_graph.py
index 9ebdcf51e..2ef8b9001 100644
--- a/tradingagents/graph/trading_graph.py
+++ b/tradingagents/graph/trading_graph.py
@@ -388,6 +388,12 @@ class TradingAgentsGraph:
         ``checkpoint_enabled`` is set in config, the graph is recompiled with
         a per-ticker SqliteSaver so a crashed run can resume from the last
         successful node on a subsequent invocation with the same ticker+date.
+
+        Returns ``(final_state, signal)`` where ``signal`` is one of the 5-tier
+        ratings (Buy / Overweight / Hold / Underweight / Sell) or ``"REVIEW"``
+        when the decision had no parseable rating (#1170); guard with
+        ``tradingagents.agents.utils.rating.is_review`` before mapping it to the
+        PortfolioRating enum.
         """
         self.ticker = company_name