Principles Of Investments In The Stock Market - Part 3

By Zigfred Diaz

This is part three on our discussion about the basic principles of investing in the stock market. Previously, the first three principles of investment was discussed. The first principle given was that you must realize that the stock market is just another vehicle of investment. The second principle dealt with realizing that investing in the stock market is a roller coaster ride. The third principle talks about determining what type of investor you are. In this article the next 4 principles will be discussed. Please visit my blog should you wish to view the entire article.

4.) You must realize that investing in the stock market does not take a lot of money but if you really want to make an impact on your portfolio you have to place in a substantial amount. - You don't need millions or hundreds of thousands of pesos to invest in the Philippine Stock market. You only need at least P 20,000.00 to somehow play it out. I started out with only this amount. In fact you can invest if you only have P 10,000.00 but for me that is too small an amount. For example Jollibee (JFC) shares cost only 51.50 per share as of today. The board lot (which is the minimum amount of stocks that you could invest in) is 100. 51.50 x 100 = P 5,150.00. This is the only amount you need to be a stock holder of Jollibee. Let's say in 1 year time Jollibee stocks climbed to P 100.00 per share, you have gained P 5,000.00 more. But if you had invested 200 shares you could have gained more than just investing in 100 shares.

5.) You must be consistent in investing - If you start small make sure you do not stay that way. Discipline yourself to invest a certain amount of your income to the stock market in order to pump in more capital so that your portfolio may grow. For the past month now I have slowly added to my investment, I did not just stop at P 20,000.00. Make investing a habit.

6.) Minimize your losses, Maximize your profits - The loss is only on paper if your stock goes down. The actual loss occurs when you sell your stock at the "losing" price. The best thing to do therefore is to never ever sell at a loss. This is the reason why it is very important that the money that you invest in the stock market is considered as surplus money, not your emergency fund. If you invest your savings or emergency fund, you will be forced to withdraw sell your stock at a loss if you desperately need the money. To maximize your profit you must utilize profits you gained from the sales of stocks and the dividends you receive to buy more shares of stocks.

7.) The stock market is not a get rich quick scheme - In all investments always take note of the principle that money takes time to grow. Those Investments that give you very high rate of return in a very short period of time are most likely investments that make other people rich, not you. Most likely it will take several months or even years in order for you to really profit in the stock market, especially in the Philippine stock market. There are times that it will just take weeks or days to really make a killing. However these are rare occasions. This usually occurs in cases like when there is a consistent bull run or that there is an unusual drop or climb of prices in a short length of time for various reasons. - 23162

About the Author:

Would you want to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he blogs about several interesting topics such as investments, financial management, business, making financial online and Stock market investing

How The Rule Of 72 Is Used By The Banks To Rob You

By Zigfred Diaz

Once upon a time an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) started working abroad. At the age of 29 he had already saved a total of P 100,000.00 (Philippine peso)

In order to preserve his P 100,000.00, he decided to place it in the bank, since this is the only vehicle of investment that he knew about. The bank manager was delighted that the OFW opened an account with them. He even recommended that the money be placed in a time deposit account enabling the OFW to earn more than the ordinary savings account.

So the money remained in the time deposit account until the OFW reached the age of 65. At that time, he then went back to the bank to withdraw the P 100,000.00. He was amazed when he learned that the P100,000.00 had already grown to P 400,000.00. He was quite happy with the growth of his money. He then withdrew the money from the bank, enjoyed life and lived happily ever after.

Is this a "live happily ever after" story or not? Do you consider this OFW as somebody who has "wisely" handled his money? Is he really earning the maximum potential for his money or is he making somebody else rich.

The rule of 72 gives us the answers to the above questions. This rule determines how many years it will take your money to double. The rule is expressed in this very simple equation: 72 / interest = No. of years it takes for your money to double

For this certain OFW, his money will double every 18 years. This is simply solved by applying the rule of 72 which is computed as follows: 72 divided 4 % per annum = 18 years. This means that if you add 18 years from the time he deposited his money, the P 100,000.00 will double to P 200,000.00 when he reaches the age of 47. After 18 more years when he reaches the age of 65, his money will already become P 400,000.00.

Now that the P 100,000.00 is in the bank's hand, what do they do with it ? Well they basically invest it in other vehicles of investments which gives them a higher interest rate such as mutual funds, the stock market, the money market, government bonds, corporate bonds etc. They even use it to loan it back to the depositors at a much more higher interest rate. But let's just say that all of the bank's investing activities gave a return of 12 % per annum. Using the rule of 72, it can be determined that the same amount of money will double every 6 years. (computed as follows: 72 divided by 12 % interest = 6 years)

So when the OFW went back to the bank after 36 years and claimed his P 100,000.00 the bank manager gladly gave him back his P 100,000.00 plus the interest of P 300,000 amounting to P 400,000.00. After all they already made P 6 million pesos out of the OFW's P 100,000.00. Now isn't that hi-way robbery?

If you want to be wealthy and be a better steward of your money then think like the bank! Make the Rule of 72 work for you ! - 23162

About the Author:

Want to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he writes about several interesting topics such as investments, financial management, business, making financial online and Stock market investing

Principles Of Investments In The Stock Market - Part 4

By Zigfred Diaz

This is the final part of the series on principles of investment in the stock market. The last seven principles was discussed in the past articles. We will be discussing the last three principles in this article. Visit my blog if you want to see the whole article.

8.) You must devote your time to study - When you want to invest in the stock market you should devote time to study what it's all about. You can't just place in your money and hope that it will somehow grow someday. You have to read books and materials on the stock market. When I started investing I dug out materials in the internet related to the stock market especially the Philippine stock market. I bought books on the stock market. The Philippine stock exchange has an "investor's primer" for those who are new to the stock market. (See the Philippine stock exchange website for more information.)

You can also attend seminars on how to trade in the stock market. Several brokerage firms have conducted free seminars for those who are new to the stock market. I attended a 2 day seminar by CITISEC Online last year. CITISEC online is one of the most innovative, well managed and most active brokerage firms in the country. The information that you could learn is astounding. Studying the stock market requires continual study. You should not stop learning.

You should read all the materials and attend all the seminars you can to further expand your knowledge You should not give up when there are terms you could not understand. For example reading this article alone may give you a headache since there are words that you can't relate to. Words such as "points, "Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi), "Blue Chips" or "Bull run" may sound foreign to you. What is worse is that you don't even understand what a stock is. It does not matter. I started out not knowing what some of these things are.

Stuff like these are never taught in school. I only learned them by reading and having a hands on experience in trading. I highly suggest that you watch the movie "Pursuit of Happyness" This is a story about one man's struggle to learn the stock market. Years later he made millions through stock trading. This movie is based on a true story and is sure to inspire you!

9.)Know what is happening in the world around you - There are several factors that affect the stock market. Be aware of the news that is making headlines in the news paper. For sure this will give you a hint on the direction that the market will take. Never skip the business news. It is here where you will be given an idea as to which stock you should buy. I prefer reading the online version of the Philippine Daily Inquirer in order that I may know where the market is heading.

10.) Don't delay today is the best day to start - Experience is the best way to learn. You may start small but the most important thing is that you start right away. Put off procrastination. Study how to go about it without rushing, but don't delay. If you already know the basics about investments start buying your first stock. Making your first profit from your first sale is truly rewarding. - 23162

About the Author:

Would you like to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he blogs about several interesting topics such as investments, money management, business, making money online and Stock market investing

Principles Of Investments In The Stock Market - Part 1

By Zigfred Diaz

People have been asking me lately if they should invest in the Philippine stock market or not. Majority of them also wanted to know how they should start. I am not sure if they are really serious about it. They could just be curious considering that it is all over the news that the stock market's performance is very positive.

The Philippine stock market or the stock market in general is not a child's play ground. If you are a true investor, you must have expectations as to how much you are going to earn for a certain type of investment. This is measured in terms of how much your money will grow at a certain period of time. (The most common measure being interest per annum) Since the Philippine Stock market is at its peak for months now, people think that they should join the party even they do not understand how it works. They are even naive with the basic principles involve. This is not to say that you should be an economist before you start investing.

The point I am making is that you should understand the basic principles first before you will be successful in the stock market. It is true that fortunes are made on the Stock market, however there are also stories of people loosing a large amount of their money. Other who just dive into the stock market without knowing the basic principles of investment quit after some time, telling themselves that the stock market does make any money for anybody.

Before discussing the details on how to invest in the Philippine stock market we must first have a good grasp on the basic principles of investment in order that we might possibly succeed and enjoy trading. There will be ten principles that will discussed. The first one will be discussed here. Other points will be discussed in the articles to come. Please visit my blog if you wish to see the article in its entirety.

1.) An alternative vehicle of investment - The first principle is that you must realize that the stock market is just another alternative vehicle of investment. There are other investment vehicles in which you could invest in. Each vehicle of investment is unique and one is not more superior than others. Each of them has their own advantages and disadvantages. This will not be discussed in depth here.

In economic parlance, the stock market is categorized as belonging to the "Capital Markets." Even in the Capital market category there are different types of investment vehicles. You have several alternatives here. Aside from the stock market, you could place your investment in pension funds, bonds, insurance, real estate, time deposit accounts different types of savings. It is important to know this because it will help you determine whether or not you should invest in the Stock Market considering that there are other alternative vehicles of investment in the Capital markets.

As I said each of them has their own advantages and disadvantages. What I personally did is not to place all of my eggs in one basket. I have invested in most of the Capital Markets including the stock market, insurance, pension, deposits, and bonds through mutual funds. - 23162

About the Author:

Would you like to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he blogs about several interesting topics such as investments, money management, business, making money online and Stock market investing

Why You Should Invest In The Stock Market - Part 2

By Zigfred Diaz

Last time we discussed about the advantages or the reasons why you should invest in the stock market. We talked about the first three which are, potential for greater returns, part ownership of the company you are investing and belonging to a special group of people. This is the concluding part of this 2 part series. If you wish to view the entire article, check out my blog.

4.) One of the best if not the best vehicle of investment - In 1986 the Philippine stock market recorded its highest return rate at 224 %. The lowest return rate was recorded in 1997 at negative 41 %. The average return in 20 years time however ranges from 24 % to 28 % per year. It can therefore be clearly seen that while it is true that investing in the stock market has its up and down, in the long run long term investments in the stock market still yields a greater return. Hence it can be concluded that the long term investors always benefit and that the stock market is still one of the best vehicles of investment.

5.) Helps you become more financially literate and inspires you to increase that knowledge - Investing in the stock market forces you to go over the business news. It also helps you give significant meaning to the major news headlines. News for you is not something to be discussed in chit chats, but rather you view it as something that will have an impact on how the market behaves. You are forced to understand words that are foreign to you. You will become more sharper intellectually as you are motivated to keep on reading. If you dozed off in your your economics class in high school or college, this time you will be pulling your hair apart just to figure out what inflation means. you will be motivated to become a life long student.

6.) Helps you understand the importance of being online and getting instant "knowledge" in this age of information technology. - Man has gone a long way from the stone age, the iron age, bronze age up to the industrial age. Now we have moved one more step ahead as we are right now in the "information technology age" where knowledge is power. Trading in the stock market by means of utilizing information technology certainly gives meaning to the adage that "knowledge is power." Years ago when I was still in college I wanted to know what it is like to invest in the stock market as I was intrigued by what I see in the movies when traders shout buy or sell. Unfortunately, I did not invest back then because of the lack of information, capability and most of all the lack of capital to do so.

With the advent of the internet age, information is everywhere through the World Wide Web. Add to the fact that you can now trade online. With this opportunities that come into play, it was now possible for me to trade in the stock market. I monitor the news online, I buy and sell online, I transfer money to my accounts online and best of all it is now possible to trade globally and invest in other stock markets around the world with the use of your computer. Although this is an entirely different arena but the stock market trading principles still come into play.

7.) Helps build the nation - Investing in the stock market helps build the nation. Most stock market investors may not realize this but this is one of the most noble objective and advantage of investing in the stock market. Companies who are listed in the stock exchange intends to infuse more capital into their business in order that such capital might be further used for expansion. Business expansions would mean more people are hired for work. The government also benefits as more taxes are being paid. This further translates into more economic activity which in the long runs helps build the nation.

Certainly these compelling reasons make a valid argument as to why you should invest in the stock market. - 23162

About the Author:

Would you like to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he blogs about several interesting topics such as investments, financial management, business, making financial online and Stock market investing