[ Type code = ^ ] Has no effect on non-alphabetic characters. You do not have to specify this for Y/N fields, since they already force upper case. When ^ is used in combination with one of ($,H,M), it takes on a new meaning: forcing the minus signs to be displayed in leading rather than trailing format. (Note that for numeric codes # and N, this is unnecessary since leading minus display format is the default.) Also see |u.