Financial Markets

Financial Markets

To get a job in finance, one highly benefits from field experience with securities and financial markets, investments and trading. Real estate is typically discussed in finance courses as well. Finance careers include financial analyst, trader and broker. Further, financial markets offer a range of lucrative employment prospects. To get a job in finance, one highly benefits from experience with securities and financial markets, investments and trading. Real estate is typically discussed in finance courses as well.

Types of financial markets include capital markets, commodity markets, bond markets, money markets, derivatives markets, futures markets, insurance markets and foreign exchange markets. Further, capital markets comprise  primary and secondary markets.

One of the funny things about the stock market is that every time one person buys, another sells, and both think they are astute (William Feather, an American Publisher and author, born in 1889 and passed away in 1981). Illustration : Megan Jorgensen (Elena).

Typically, investments include long-term and short-term investments. Financial institutions, such as banks, manage investments for their customers. An array of invested funds are called a portfolio and may include stocks, bonds or a combination of stocks and bonds. Moreover, bonds refer to debt, while stocks correspond to traded shares of a public company. A healthy cash flow is vital to any company doing business, and raising funds is one of the main concerns of any business firms. Therefore, capital may be raised by loans or debt (liabilities) or shares (shareholders’ equity). Also, the first time a company sells its shares is called an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Initial public offerings are sold in primary markets. In contrast, security trading takes place in secondary markets. Naturally, fluctuations in the market may result in invested capital decreasing or increasing in value over time. Stocks are traded on stock exchanges, while currency exchange refers to international capital flow and exchange.

Alternatively, to obtain a loan, it is quintessential to have good credit or be in good standing with credit rating agencies. Finally, market fluctuations may lead to capital gain or loss.

Also, an investment portfolio is chosen based on the consumer’s needs, such as saving to buy a house, as well as, tolerance to risk. Consequently, risk averse investors tend to favour conservative investing, while risk tolerant investors prefer aggressive investment strategies. Qualified financial advisers or financial planners may be very helpful in dealing with these matters.