The S&P 500 (or Standard & Poor’s 500) is an index of 500 stocks that are used to measure the performance of the domestic stock market in the U.S. The S&P 500 was created to represent the major common stock of public American companies.
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The S&P 500 is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Pay-to-Play is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Pay-t0-play is essentially the practice of exchanging money for access to or the privilege of participating in certain activities. Sometimes it is in reference to the actions of government officials or politicians to award benefits to a business or individual. For example, the owner of a road construction company might give a politician some money – maybe through campaign contributions or maybe just cash in a suitcase – to make sure his company gets a big government contract to build a new highway. There are all sorts of campaign finance and other laws to try and prevent this practice.
The Great Depression is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009The Great Depression is the severe, global, long-term economic downturn that began with a stock market crash in October 1929. In the United States, the stock market lost half of its value within a month of the crash’s start and unemployment remained as high as 17% in 1939, 10 years after the crash. The depression followed a decade of spectacular economic growth – the “roaring twenties” – and the U.S. economy didn’t really recover until the build-up to WWII in the 1940s.
A Defined Benefit Plan is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009A defined benefit plan is a type of pension plan under which the plan’s sponsor agrees to pay all employees who are covered by that plan a specified amount of benefits when they retire. For example, and in contrast to a Defined Contribution Plan, a retiree is guaranteed health care rather than a certain dollar amount to use towards health care.
A Trading Floor is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009A trading floor is the physical space where listed stocks and bonds are traded (at the New York Stock Exchange or a brokerage company, for example).
A Plan is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009A plan is an arrangement of making regular payments toward a pension, savings account, or insurance policy. For example, if you decide to put 2% of your monthly income into your savings account on a consistent basis, that’s your personal savings plan.
Electronic Fund Transfers are…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Electronic fund transfers (EFTs) are the movement or deposition of money using purely electronic signals, like using an ATM machine to transfer money between accounts, rather than using checks or cash and bank tellers.
Antitrust Laws are…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Antitrust laws are created to prevent companies from adopting certain business practices (like monopolizing an industry) that can restrict trade. These laws are in place to make businesses more competitive, which is better for the economy as a whole.
Investor Relations is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Investor relations is a department within a company that distributes information about the company and its financial health to existing and potential shareholders.
An Investor is…
Friday, August 21st, 2009Traditionally, an investor is an individual who commits money to products with the expectation of greater financial return. It is a major goal of an investor to minimize risk and maximize profit.