Understanding Current Economic Conditions: A Peek at the Global Stock Market

By Damian Papworth

It's been a difficult year for economics all over the world. With the tumble of the United States economy, in large part due to the absolute plummet of America-based stock markets, including the NASDAQ, a ripple effect was set into motion that reached further than many analysts could have predicted. While many talking heads experts recommended that it wasn't a time to sell back in October of 2008, as the picture became clearer, many financial gurus were left scratching their heads in confusion.

Imagine then, the surprise at the turn that the global economy has taken in the past couple of years. People have watched in horror as bank accounts dwindled, companies were shuttered, and loans and credit became something that was increasingly difficult to maintain or apply for a new version of. However, it's no surprise that after the events set in motion by the United States economy a couple of years back in the mortgage game, the world economy is currently recoiling

The world stock market's value has been estimated at close to seven hundred trillion dollars, with the role of the United States economy in that market significant, at around forty trillion dollars. However, the last year or so has been a see-saw ride of recovery, with times looking up and times looking extremely dismal. Entire countries have been bankrupted through the cause and effect of foreign investments. Famously, the entire country of Iceland, a small island nation with only two or three national banks, managed to lose the entire country's savings just because of the faltering power of the dollar and the Euro in unison.

International industry is a major component in how the financial troubles of one major industrialized nation could impact so many others. Many business are now international, especially corporations with a great deal of power and market shares. To do business well in the 21st century is to understand it as an international enterprise, and since investments are tied into a world scale, it's no wonder that stock markets crashing can have such an epic and global effect.

It's possible for Americans to try their luck on the Hong Kong exchange and for those in Europe to buy a great deal of stock in a publicly-traded American company. And the business whose job it is to regulate these sort of trades, as well as the investment companies dealing in mortgages, are supposed to have systems in place to sound the alarm if things start to go downhill.

While there are entities in check who are supposed to be keeping track of the conditions of various world markets, recent events show that sometimes those watchers clearly need to be watched, too. Especially after the near-gloomy crash of the late 1980s, when America vowed to put aside a path of excess and tone things down a bit, it's shocking to see just 20 years later another difficult financial circumstance to navigate. Only this time, the rest of the world economy's come with it.

It wasn't just the market, but the banks, that played a part in the latest near-collapse. With so many banks folding left and right, not just in the United States but in many European nations, and even as far away as Asia, federal governments had to scramble. In some countries, like Iceland, the federal government couldn't bail out the banks and outsiders had to step in, while in the United States, the government now owns shares in Bank of America, like it or not, and BoA has been an integral part of taking over other failing banks.

While many people chalk their confusion of recent economic events up to simply not understanding, the fact of the matter is that even those people who understand are surprised at the turn that events have taken, and at how far markets were allowed to fall before government stepped in to intervene. While playing the stock market used to be a pastime worth recommending, now is not a good time to start in with investing, regardless of if the market turns bear or bull. - 23200

About the Author:

Damian Papworth loves stock market investing. It has become a major element of his work from home income.

Understand How To Trade Options In Our Lifetime Options Course Guide Overview

By Johnny M Junior

Learn how to trade options in our lifetime options course. Options are a strong instrument that every investor should become knowledgeable about.

Before you start, forget about anything that you have heard regarding the concern over risks when trading options. Options were created to manage and limit potential risks. In fact, there are some option trades that can be done with no risk at all.

When investing in the stock market, you are always taking a chance. You can limit your risks two ways. Anytime stock is bought, the buyer is betting when the stock increases in value. It is not a guarantee that this will happen. If it was guaranteed, all assets would go into buying that particular stock. When a buyer also purchases options, that buyer is limiting the risk of losing money while being assured that there is no limit to potential earnings. You can speculate and hedge when purchasing options which is what options do for you. There are actually some option strategies which have nearly no risk at all involved. These spreads can take years to discover if you do not learn from a mentor. In fact, most option traders never learn them.

Investors can choose to hedge their portfolios. Basically, the investor is purchasing insurance that will protect their investment from potential disaster. It is very similar to buying homeowners insurance. The chance of something bad happening is slim; however, having someone else bear the brunt of the disaster is more appealing than dealing with it yourself. When you hedge your portfolio, you are insuring your investment.

The prices of options are based on the price of an underlying stock as well as other values.

Deciding whether to hedge or contemplate using your options is only the first step needed. You will find an option chain listing and then see what is available for you to select. Simply choosing to hedge or contemplate is not nearly enough. It is also wise to establish an investment strategy and whether you are trading a call option or a put. Decide what price you want to trade and how long you want the expiration date to last. Finally, what option strategy to use based on volatility in the markets.

The value of an option is established by using a convoluted differential equation.

Option pricing is based on a very complex equation, but we can look at them in a more simple term. Let's just say they are Time Premium + Intrinsic Value.

There are many factors that play an important part in every option price, but there are only two features that an investor can control, and they are the time to expiration and the strike price. Traders need to focus on choosing the right strike and expiration for them. There are several strategies that all should consider:

Hedging: a simple strategy to protect the downside of the market is something like a longer expiration and using puts on out of money options.

Speculating: in the money options, short expiration and use calls. Again, this is a very simple strategy, but not one that I would ever do. This is something basic that beginners start with.

A number of risks and rewards are part of the in or out of the money options that all investors should know. An ITM option is going to be more money to buy; however, the possibility of it still having value upon expiration is higher. An OTM option is cheaper initially but the chances of it having any value when it expires is lower. - 23200

About the Author:

Learn how to trade options with our lifetime options course. Options are a great instrument and something which every saver should get the inside scoop on options learning .

The Most Popular Investment Vehicles in the Financial World

By Travis Packer

If you've ever invested money, I'm sure you can relate to the thrill that a great investment or trade brings. Few things in this world beat the rush that comes with making money this way.

People are always looking for ways to make their money grow, and the first place that many people look is to the hottest markets. We've seen many of them in our lifetimes and we're bound to see some more. These exemplify the dreams of overnight riches that many of us have, so there are always investors flocking to them.

The present day investment environment brings about a lot of opportunity. Whether you feel that the market is on its way up or down from here, one thing is for sure. The market is extremely volatile.

With volatility comes opportunity. Here are three areas that might present themselves as high upside investment opportunities. Whether you're long or short, it's all about timing these things right.

Perhaps the biggest fad in today's market is that of the ETF, which stands for exchange-traded fund. Whether you're buying an ETF that's tied to the banking industry, the energy industry, or the overall market as a whole, there are plenty of ways to profit from an ETF and they all involve the directional movements of certain industries.

If you want something even more speculative than ETFs, try playing around in the options markets. By buying a contract tied directly to the future value of a stock, you can make huge multiples on your money. Then again, you can lose it all too, so tread carefully with stock options.

If you're interested in profiting from the growth or demise of other economies, you should definitely look into Forex trading. This all has to do with the foreign exchange market and millions of people actively trade Forex currencies.

Try any of these out if you're short on investment ideas. Just remember though - where there's reward, there's risk. - 23200

About the Author:

Ivybot is a widely cutting edge Forex trading robot. Read this author's critique of the product, which dispels the concerns of an Ivybot scam.