subject: Investment Basics That You May Need To Be Aware Of [print this page] The world of investment is characterized by a lot of terminologies and dynamics that a fresh investor should familiarize with before making any financial commitments. It pays a lot to be informed about how securities behave, or how they invest to make a return. It is also important to understand how the market is affected by various factors, and what effect this has on the securities. One needs to have a guide on what they are looking for and there are firms that have been established purposely for this function.
They will inform you on the major aspects of investment that you need to be familiar with. There are also magazines and financial reports that you must keep looking out for, as they give detailed reports on the performance of different securities. Among the issues that one needs to understand include the process of buying and selling securities. It may sometimes not be as easy as it sounds, and as such, one needs to keep an eye on the changing market conditions so that they can establish when demand or supply is high and what effect this has on securities.
It is also important to familiarize with channels through which one can buy or sell securities. The most commonly used channel is the stock exchange counter, which is a market situated at a specific location in a given state where investors meet to trade and keep check of how the prices are moving. In the United States, two of the most common markets are the New York Stock Exchange and the American Stock Exchange. This is where one gets to know which company is offering which securities and compare them to the performance of other companies as well.
To sell or buy securities directly from the counters of the stock exchange, one must involve a broker. A broker is able to negotiate the prices on your behalf, as well as guide you on the probability of improvement of performance of those securities. One advantage of dealing with a broker is that your investment is secured. This is because brokers are registered with the National Association of Securities Dealers, which seeks to protect both the rights of the brokers and of the investors as well.
Any misunderstanding arising in the process is sure to be sorted out accordingly. However, the risk involved in trading in securities is purely the responsibility of the investor. The next thing to familiarize with is the mechanism that is used to determine the prices of these securities. While there are many ways of arriving at the prices, one of the most basic methodologies is use of the exchange prices. The basic principle of this method is auctioning.
Prices are settled at through the interests of the investors. If a price cannot be arrived at through bidding, then someone known as a specialist has to intervene and settle the price, to maintain order in the market at least. Information on other methodologies used are available from the financial market advisors.
Investment Basics That You May Need To Be Aware Of
