Us Stock Market, Its Working And History
The US stock market has a long history dotted with a lot of ups and downs. The stock market is made up of two exchanges - the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations system (NASDAQ).
The NY Stock exchange is more than 150 years old and has - in terms of dollars -. the largest volume of stocks traded all over the world. In terms of volumes, the New York Stock exchange is only second, since the NASDAQ - another stock exchange institution in the USA stock market - comes first in terms of volumes exchanged. The capitalization of the market of the NYSE is the bigger in the world and has a figure of trillion of dollars.
A common stock holder can easily trade his or her stocks by buying and selling them at the United States Stock Market. They can trade them electronically at both exchanges or on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchanges. However, direct trading on the floor is only available for members or “seat owners”. These seats are highly prized as there is a limited number. To own a seat, you must pay a fee, currently valued at 4 million dollars.
An index of stocks reflects the general trend in the prices of stocks. Each major stock exchange has an index constructed from the prices of significant stocks that are quoted and traded in the exchange. The NASDAQ index, the Dow Jones index and the S&P index are the three most important indices in the US. These indices are further enlarged to include stocks of all major sectors in order to indicate sector wise trends.
Stock exchanges use stock symbols for denoting the stocks. These are essentially short forms of the company names. You can easily look up the history, current quotes and trends of any company from the stock exchange websites if you know the symbol.
The history of the stock markets in the US is both interesting and informative. Among the notable events during its long history, the crash of 1929 is perhaps the most significant one. The black Tuesday of 1929 is considered as the worst day in the history of the US stock market. The largest quantum of selling was completed on that single day. The crash of 1929 eroded more than $100 billion in investors’ assets. This would be worth several hundred times more in today’s dollar values.
If you have some spare money that you would like to invest stocks form a good option. There are several avenues available for people who may not have the expertise to manage their own investments. These include invest stocks and mutual fund companies. Although these organizations generally manage the investments professionally, all are not equally good. You should make your own inquiries before investing through any of them.
The us stock market consists of two exchanges, NYSE and NASDAQ. If you have some spare money that you would like to invest stocks form a good option. In order to denote the stocks, stock exchanges use stock symbols, usually abbreviated forms of the company names. You can easily search the current quotes, history and trends of any company. There are several avenues available for people who may not have the expertise to manage their own investments. Although these organizations generally manage your money professionally, all are not equally good. You should make your own inquiries before investing through any of them.
- Mark Crisp
