Beyond foreign exchange (Forex), a wide array of market instrument categories are offered to investors and traders. These instruments allow for diversification, different risk profiles, and varied investment strategies. Here are some of the most common categories: * Stocks (Equities): * Represent ownership shares in a company. * Traded on exchanges (e.g., NYSE, NASDAQ) or over-the-counter (OTC). * Investors profit from capital appreciation (stock price increase) and dividends. * Bonds (Debt Instruments): * Represent a loan made by an investor to a borrower (government, corporation). * Investors receive regular interest payments (coupons) and the return of the principal at maturity. * Generally considered less volatile than stocks, offering a stable income stream. * Commodities: * Raw materials or primary agricultural products (e.g., oil, gold, silver, natural gas, corn, wheat). * Traded on commodity exchanges, often via futures contracts. * Value influenced by supply and demand, geopolitical events, and economic conditions. * Derivatives: * Financial contracts whose value is derived from an underlying asset (which could be stocks, bonds, commodities, indices, or even other currencies). * Common types include: * Futures: Agreements to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined price on a future date. * Options: Give the holder the right, but not the obligation, to buy (call option) or sell (put option) an underlying asset at a specific price by a certain date. * Contracts for Difference (CFDs): Allow speculation on price movements of various assets without owning the underlying asset. * Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs): * Baskets of securities (like stocks, bonds, or commodities) that trade like individual stocks on exchanges. * Offer diversification and can track various indices, sectors, or asset classes. * Mutual Funds: * Professionally managed investment funds that pool money from multiple investors to invest in a diversified portfolio of securities. * Unlike ETFs, they typically trade only once per day based on their Net Asset Value (NAV). * Indices: * Represent the performance of a specific group of stocks or other assets (e.g., S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average). * Traders can gain exposure to entire markets or sectors through index funds, ETFs, or index futures/CFDs. * Cryptocurrencies: * Digital or virtual currencies secured by cryptography (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum). * Traded on cryptocurrency exchanges, known for high volatility. These categories provide diverse avenues for investment and trading, catering to different risk appetites and financial goals. #2025RealBrokerReviews