Stock Markets Exposed - what is investing? how do i do it? how can i make money from investing?

what is investing? how do i do it? how can i make money from investing?

i'm a novice when it comes to investing. when i was a teenager, my father thru a broker, invested some money and i know i still have it but i dont know what im even looking at. one of my friend invest daily... goes thru some program and buy and sell stocks daily... how do i do that? i'm so confused... what is the difference between stock and hedge fund?

Public Comments

You are FAR FAR away from needing to be concerned about hedge funds. Talk to a broker that you can find in the phone book or a financial planner. You'd actually be much better off getting a recommendation from a friend so that you don't just pick a random person that runs off with all your money (it happens!). Then start to invest but only after you slowly educate yourself on what you're buying. Don't EVER buy anything you don't understand, even if you have a professional helping you. You should still know where your money is going and continue to learn along the way. Be careful as everyone seems to have "great stocks" that they think they know about that have done well. Don't get caught up in the hype and just play it a lot safer in the beginning until you start to do a lot of reading about what your money is doing. Good luck!
Never invest more than you can afford to lose. Investmenting always involve the risk of loss. in·vest·ment(n-vstmnt) noun. 1. The act of investing. 2. An amount invested. 3. Property or another possession acquired for possible future financial return or benefit. Today's Markets - Yahoo! Finance - The basics of investing. Investing - Learn the basics of investing. Find tutorials, investing strategies and expert advice. ... Investing Ideas. A stock fund or equity fund is a fund that invests in Equities more commonly known as stocks. Such funds are typically held either in stock or cash, as opposed to Bonds, notes, or other securities. This may be a mutual fund or exchange-traded fund. The objective of an equity fund is long-term growth through capital appreciation, although dividends and interest are also sources of revenue. Specific equity funds may focus on a certain sector of the market or may be geared toward a certain level of risk. Stock funds can be distinguished by several properties. Funds may have a specific style, for example, value or growth. Funds may invest in solely the securities from one country, or from many countries. Funds may focus on some size of company, that is, small-cap, large-cap, et cetera. Funds which are managed by professionals are said to be actively managed where as Index funds try as best as possible to mirror specific market indices. Hedge funds have made the stock market much more risky. Since they are unregulated, they can make investments without scrutiny by the SEC. Unlike mutual funds, they don’t have to report quarterly on their holdings. This means no one really knows what they are invested in. Their use of derivatives means that, with little actual money invested, they have the capability to create large swings in the market. For example, many experts have said that the run-up in oil prices in July of 2006 was caused, in part, by hedge funds. Although no one really knows how much of the market is controlled by hedge funds, Credit Suisse estimates it could be half of the New York and London Stock Exchanges.
CSUFlyer has the right advice. Educate yourself before buying anything. Take little steps. Mutual funds are always a good start. Here is a resource that will give you some information.
Open a brokerage account at Zecco.
I think you could look at FOREX market. The bigest market in the world. Take a look at: http://www.finanzasforex.com/prg they are a Private Club of Investments and offer very high interest funds. (10% to 23% month) and more 3000 investors just in this moment. You can gain access now for FREE.
A stock fund is a mutual fund that invests in stocks. Each fund will have a specific goal such as trying to track a benchmark such as the S&P500 to a managed fund that only buys stocks in emerging markets. There are literally thousands of mutual funds. Hedge funds usually buy stocks, options, and anything that the manager feels will earn them a nice profit. Normally the fund fees are higher and tied to a performance metric. Hedge funds typically have high minimums. If you want to buy stocks on your own, daily, first educate yourself. Only then should you open an account. As a young person you have time and compound interest on your side. Be wise: start with education!