Stock Market Fundamentals

What Is a Stock

A stock is a share of a company. When you buy a share of Apple, you become a small owner of the company. If the company grows, your share grows too.

Major Exchanges

• NYSE — New York Stock Exchange (largest in the world)
• NASDAQ — Home of tech giants
• LSE — London Stock Exchange

What Is an Index

An index is a "basket" of stocks. For example:

1. S&P 500 — 500 largest US companies
2. Dow Jones — 30 large industrial companies
3. NASDAQ 100 — 100 largest non-financial NASDAQ companies

Your First Investment

For beginners we recommend:

• Start with an ETF (S&P 500 tracker), not individual stocks
• Invest only money you don't need for the next 5 years
• Review your portfolio at most once a month

📊 Markets trend up over time. Position matters more than perfect timing.