Teach me.. S and p 500.

[bhumik]

i was talking to a friend of mine and he was telling me about s and p 500. He plays it everyday.. I dont know much but from what he was saying it sounded like, everyday you place a bet on if the market is gonna close high or close low, and you make money if you are correct. Does that sound right. If so is there a "simulator" to play this market where i can play for free to learn the ins and outs.

PS i know very little about business. finance. etc. etc.

 

[leegee38]

Quick and dirty answer: The S&P500 is an index that is theoretically made up of one share of each of the top 500 stocks on the NY stock exchange. There is a derivative contract called a future that trades on the S&P500 on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Futures are highly leveraged investments where you can control hundreds of thousands of dollars with just a few thousand. The best place to begin to learn about futures is the exchange website, which is www.cmegroup.com . There is a mini contract on the S&P500 known as the E-Mini that is the most traded contract that mirrors the S&P.

I realize this doesn't tell you much, but hopefully it is a start. Good luck!

 

[bhumik]

thanks .

 

[Pekkerwood]

Bhumik:

One of my primary businesses is a small hedge fund that does this trade daily. It is by far, one of the riskiest ways to invest and no place for a part timer. It is not investing, it is trading, big difference. Investing makes you wealthy, trading makes you go bald. 80% of all traders who day trade futures contracts will lose 100% of the money they started with. Its like running DNP, Insulin, Growth, and 3grams of Fina versus TRT.

 

[bhumik]

Bhumik:

One of my primary businesses is a small hedge fund that does this trade daily. It is by far, one of the riskiest ways to invest and no place for a part timer. It is not investing, it is trading, big difference. Investing makes you wealthy, trading makes you go bald. 80% of all traders who day trade futures contracts will lose 100% of the money they started with. Its like running DNP, Insulin, Growth, and 3grams of Fina versus TRT.

hahahahahaha. thanks 4 putting it in a language i will understand.. will stay away..

 

[xxxChrisxxx]

It's a full-time business, and one of the hardest yuo'll ever attempt.

I couldn't agree more. You must treat it like a business and if stocks/bonds and their derivatives look like easy money to you, proceed with caution—it's all just a well planned illusion.