Recommended by finance experts and used extensively byinstitutional investors, index funds and exchange-traded funds(ETFs) provide unmanaged, diversified exposure to a variety ofasset classes. Index Investing For Dummies shows activeinvestors how to add index investments to their portfolios and makethe most of their money, while protecting their assets. It featuresplain-English information on the different types of index funds andtheir advantage over other funds, getting started in indexinvesting, using index funds for asset allocation, understandingreturns and risk, diversifying among fund holdings, and applyingwinning strategies for maximum profit.

In The Futures , Emily Lambert, senior writer at Forbes magazine, tells us the rich and dramatic history ofthe Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Chicago Board of Trade, whichtogether comprised the original, most bustling futures market inthe world. She details the emergence of the futures business as akind of meeting place for gamblers and farmers and its subsequenttransformation into a sophisticated electronic market wherecontracts are traded at lightning-fast speeds. Lambert also detailsthe disastrous effects of Wall Street's adoption of the futurescontract without the rules and close-knit social bonds that hadmade trading it in Chicago work so well. Ultimately Lambert arguesthat the futures markets are the real "free" markets and thatspeculators, far from being mere parasites, can serve a vitaleconomic and social function given the right architecture. Thetraditional futures market, she explains, because of its writtenand cultural limits, can serve as a useful example for how marketsought to work and becom

The classic guide to the securities markets, revised to reflectthe realities of a new millennium. In the past decade, thecomplicated world of investing has changed--dramatically. Stocks,Bonds, Options, Futures is now thoroughly revised and updated tohelp novice financial professionals as well as individualinvestors, who want a better understanding of the securitiesmarket, navigate this daunting new financial terrain withconfidence. Stuart Veale, an investment industry veteran andrespected author, provides an insider's look at the marketrealities of today and tomorrow. This reliable resource examines the impact of recentdevelopments and current trends in the various securities markets.Among the topics Veale covers and has updated in this secondedition are: Internet-based trading and analysis The adoption ofthe Euro Changes in the way OTC orders are executed The varioustypes of securities, including money market instruments, USTreasury Securities, bonds, mortgage-backed securities, and stocksReal world applic