The Great Courses – Understanding the World of Financial Markets 2024-8

Published on: 2024-09-03 18:38:06

Categories: 28

Descriptions

Understanding the World of Financial Markets, Whether you’re buying a home, saving for retirement, running a business, or just plain speculating, it’s important to understand financial markets. These are the engines of commerce in today’s world, powering economic activity and steering the flow of capital
In this course, Professor Fullenkamp surveys the big picture, analyzing the underlying mechanics that drive markets, while providing insights into why they behave the way they do. He gets to the bottom of mystifying topics such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs (non-fungible tokens), tells how to gauge the strengths and weaknesses of a company, and gives you a handle on those irrational drivers of markets: greed and fear. You will come away as a more-informed investor, prepared to take advantage of opportunities that fit your goals, resources, and risk tolerance. A few of the markets that you will learn about are not for general investors, but, in fact, they govern how other markets work. For instance, intangible assets are some of the most valuable property that is owned by companies, but you can’t buy shares in them. Instead, you should bear them in mind when deciding whether to invest in a firm. Intangible assets include patents, copyrights, and other intellectual property, along with brand names, logos, reputation, and comparable non-physical assets. With experience studying financial markets for the better part of four decades, Professor Fullenkamp knows how to evaluate investor behavior and new financial products

What you’ll learn

Taking Advantage of Fear: Fear among investors translates into volatility in stock prices. Expectations about this volatility are measured by the VIX index; the higher the index, the more volatile or fearful the market. On the principle of going against the herd, Professor Fullenkamp counsels, “When the VIX is high, it’s time to buy.”
Digital Assets: Railroads are a good analogy for the hype surrounding digital assets. In the 1840s, it was clear that railroads would revolutionize transportation, but it took decades until the industry stabilized. Cryptocurrency and other virtual holdings are in a similar boat. It would be wise to let the market settle down before jumping in.
Principle-Driven Investing: ESGs (environmental, social, and governance funds) face a number of criticisms that have nothing to do with their laudatory goals. As with digital assets, there are standardization and regulatory issues yet to be worked out. As with any investment, it’s best to research the product before you buy.