Wall Street Education

What is OPEC?

OPEC, or the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, is an international organization founded in 1960 by a group of oil-producing countries. OPEC's goal is to cooperate in the field of oil production and ensure stability in oil prices in global markets.

OPEC members include countries with rich oil resources such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Venezuela, and others. The organization also includes several oil-producing countries outside OPEC, such as Russia and Kazakhstan.

One of OPEC's key activities is regulating the level of oil production by its members. They regularly hold meetings to discuss oil production quotas for each member country. These quotas can be increased or decreased depending on current market conditions and the demand in the global oil market. OPEC's decisions can have a significant impact on global oil prices and, consequently, on the global economy. The organization remains a key player in the global energy arena and continues to influence global economic trends.

1 year ago | [YT] | 0

Wall Street Education

What is Alpha?

In the financial world, the term "alpha" refers to excess returns that an investor or asset portfolio generates above the market returns. It is an indicator of a fund manager's or investment strategy's ability to outperform the overall market trend and achieve above-average results.

Alpha is measured in percentage points and is a key metric for evaluating investment effectiveness. Investors aim to maximize alpha to achieve maximum returns and outperform the overall market. However, achieving consistent alpha returns requires in-depth market analysis, expertise, and careful risk management.

1 year ago | [YT] | 1

Wall Street Education

The AMEX Exchange, the American Stock Exchange, is one of the exchanges that has lost its independence in recent years. Geographically located in New York, AMEX was at one time the largest US securities trading platform - in the mid-1950s, it accounted for more than 50% of all transactions.

In 1998, the exchange was bought by NASDAQ, but in 2004 AMEX participants bought the site back. Later merged with NYSE.

Emmanuel Mendels and Karl Forzheimer were inspired to create AMEX, which is an acronym for American Stock Exchange, by the great American panic of 1907 on the NYSE and the growing demand for processed products, in particular, kerosene. It was decided to create a platform for especially small enterprises in the oil, metallurgical, textile and chemical sectors. The exchange was named the New York Curb Market Agency.

Like most sites of that time, the office did not have a full-fledged office, and announcements about the sale and purchase of assets were posted on concrete pedestals. Thus, it was possible to save on the maintenance of the premises, and the number of participants was much higher than what was present on the NYSE floor.

Soon the “street brokers” had a constitution and rules.
In 1921, at the end of World War I, the exchange was quite wealthy, and in 1921 moved to an office on Greenwich Street in Lower Manhattan, proudly named the New York Curb Exchange Building.

In 1929, the site was renamed the New York Curb Exchange (NYCE), emphasizing the "abandonment" of the marketing agency form and the pivot to stock trading.

After World War II, when the American economy began to lose momentum due to a halt in the flow of government orders, NYCE was again renamed, this time to the American Stock Exchange.

In 1977, AMEX received a takeover bid from the NYSE. The head of AMEX, Paul Colton, spoke out against it - at that time the NYSE was not yet the world leader in stock trading, and AMEX's positions seemed unshakable. I had to agree after more than 20 years, when investors faced the 2008 crisis.

2 years ago | [YT] | 1

Wall Street Education

How Coca-Cola saved a small town in a crisis

At the height of the Great Depression in the United States, a banker from the small provincial town of Quincy (Florida), Mark Munro, noticed that despite the crisis, people still manage to find a couple of cents on a can of Coca-Cola. This led the banker to believe that the market was grossly undervaluing the company's stock. Munro began to actively buy papers despite the huge risks

Mark advised his clients and neighbors to do the same, and even issued loans to buy shares. The strategy worked. When the whole country was making ends meet, the city lived on dividends from soda. Quincy soon became one of the richest cities in the US per capita, with 67 of its richest residents earning the nickname "Coca-Cola Millionaires"

Today, about 8,000 people live in the quiet town of Quincy, and the bank where Mark worked continues to hold most of the investments in Coca-Cola shares. As Warren Buffett said, “Only buy what you would be perfectly happy to keep if the market closed for 10 years.”

2 years ago | [YT] | 0

Wall Street Education

"January effect" in the stock market

In the investment world, many people want to find certain seasonal patterns and capitalize on them. One such period is called the January effect.

This is a calendar anomaly seen in the market when stock prices tend to rise in the first month of the year.

Some traders believe that the January effect is a reliable "calendar pattern" that can be used for trading strategies. In their opinion, it provides an opportunity to buy shares at a low price in December and sell them after the effect of January works and prices rise. Others simply consider the effect of January when they want to buy or sell stocks at that time of the year.

It is explained by the fact that at the end of December prices decrease due to tax optimization (unprofitable positions are closed). Also, the bonuses that managers receive at the end of the past year enter the market.

2 years ago | [YT] | 0

Wall Street Education

The last trading day for stock options is usually the third Friday of each month. The closing day of trading for index futures, stock index options and single stock futures is usually the third Friday of each quarter. Thus, there are only four dates when stock options, stock index options, index futures, and individual stock futures expire at the same time. This day is called "Quadruple Witching".

Quadruple Witching is important for investors and traders as these days are usually the most heavily traded days of the year.

In Quadruple Witching, days usually don't have much momentum. According to Dow Jones market data, the S&P 500 has averaged 0.04% daily gain since it began in 2002.

2 years ago | [YT] | 1

Wall Street Education

What is the Santa Claus Rally in the Stock Exchange?

US stocks often rise in the run-up to the holidays, a trend known as the "Santa Claus Rally". The period covers seven trading days: from December 25 to January 2.

The S&P 500 has gained an average of 1.3% on those seven days since 1950 most of the time.

There are many explanations for the Santa Rally, including tax considerations, a general feeling of optimism and seasonal happiness on Wall Street, and holiday bonus investing.

2 years ago | [YT] | 1

Wall Street Education

On this day in 1914, the New York Stock Exchange reopened after closing in July amid worries about the outbreak of World War I.

By the end of 1915, the stock market was up almost 82% as the US economy worked to supply Western Europe by producing goods and weapons

2 years ago | [YT] | 1

Wall Street Education

Fearless Girl was created as an advertising project.

The sculpture was commissioned by financial company State Street Global Advisors. It was installed before International Women's Day in 2017 to advertise the ETF, which has the ticker SHE on the Nasdaq. The fund follows an index that tracks companies with a high percentage of female CEOs.

The sculptor Arturo Di Modica was outraged that a figure appeared in front of his bull, which changed the meaning of the composition. He stated that "Fearless Girl" is not a symbol, but a publicity stunt that commercializes his work and distorts its meaning: the bull was a symbol of prosperity and strength of America, and now turned into a villain. Di Modica threatened to take legal action for copyright infringement, and The Girl was removed from the bull in November 2018.

Having moved away from the bull, the sculpture was moved to a new location - now the "Fearless Girl" stands in front of the New York Stock Exchange. Here it is posted permanently.

2 years ago | [YT] | 0

Wall Street Education

Halloween is the second largest retail holiday in the US, second only to Christmas. But how much money are consumers willing to spend on this every year, and how does this money affect the economy? Let's figure it out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpRvw...

2 years ago | [YT] | 0