What is…
You searched for: "What is..."
- A
- active (and passive) investingA key decision investors must make is whether to manage their money actively…
- an alternative assetAlternative assets are a hot topic among certain investors, financial advisers…
- anchoringYou know that very expensive bottle on the wine list at your local that you’ll…
- animal spiritWhen the price of shares or other assets fall sharply or surge dramatically,…
- APRThe three letter acronym APR – or annual percentage rate – is often printed…
- art investingThe very act of getting a return from paintings and sculpture is something…
- an asset bubbleInvestors naturally want the value of their holdings to rise over time.
- availability biasSay there’s been a lot in the press lately about a particular company and…
- B
- bank “stress testing”What exactly are bank stress tests and why do they matter?
- behavioural economicsStandard economics typically assumes people make rational decisions.
- a boiler room scamBoiler room scams play on human fallibilities of greed and gullibility.
- a bond vigilanteIn the wider world, a vigilante is commonly seen as a heroic figure that protects…
- a bridging loanWhen we think of loans, a mortgage or student loan may spring to mind. The…
- a brokerFor many the term broker conjures up an image of financial traders shouting…
- a budget deficitWhen individuals spend more than they earn, they go into debt or deficit.
- a bull (or a bear) marketThere’s a famous sculpture in New York’s Wall Street of a charging bull.
- C
- causing later retirementWhy are state retirement ages are rising around the globe?
- choice overloadPicking the meal you want from a menu of dishes is one of the joys of dining…
- a commitment deviceThis situation may be familiar: in the morning we vow that at dinner we will…
- a commodityCommodities form an essential part of our daily lives as they are used in food,…
- compound interestAccording to urban legend, Albert Einstein referred to compound interest as…
- confirmation biasPerhaps you’re going to invest in a long-term deposit at a bank.
- consumer confidenceWhy do consumer confidence figures trigger strong interest?
- contagionBefore 1997, the term contagion almost always referred to the spread of a medical…
- contrarian investingWe know a contrarian is a person who takes a position opposite to that of the…
- a credit crunchIn the aftermath of the global financial crisis, it seemed difficult to get…
- a credit ratings agencyWhat are AAA ratings and S&P all about?
- currency warIt is not a battle with guns but attempts to keep currencies weak can have…
- D
- the daylight saving anomalyIt can be difficult to get out of bed on the Monday after the clocks go forward…
- debt restructuringRestructuring a country's debt may sound difficult to grasp but the process…
- a dependency ratioWe know people in many countries are living longer.
- disposable incomeHow does this measure of take home pay differ from available income?
- dividend reinvestmentInvestors who hold shares in companies can make money two ways
- the dollar carry tradeEven if you have never heard of the dollar carry trade, chances are it will…
- drip pricingFew people have heard of “drip pricing”.
- E
- an economic cycleIt will come as no surprise to those who have lived through the last decade…
- the economics of happinessA new book details the growing study of "happiness economics" - and if a big…
- the efficient markets theoryIf you knew a certain car had a fault, would that information change the price…
- an emergency fundAn emergency fund is one of the essentials of healthy personal finances.
- an emerging marketBRICs, CIVETS, MAVINS and EAGLES
- the endowment effectMost people probably know a homeowner who is very emotionally attached to their…
- the European stabilisation mechanismA simple guide to the "bailout" for parts of Europe
- F
- fat fingerTechnology may have radically changed the way people run their finances but…
- financial repressionYou might not have heard of the obscure term “financial repression”.
- financial riskInvestors can benefit from understanding different types of investments - and…
- a fiscal cliffFiscal cliff is a new term that refers to an economic challenge faced in the…
- a fixed rateFor borrowers and savers alike, one of the most important parts of a financial…
- the framing effectMany of us would like to think that we make decisions based on the cold facts.
- GDPMany economists barely go through a day without uttering the three letter acronym…
- going shortShort selling is a technique investors use to bet that the price of an asset…
- a growth (and a value) fundEven when investors have made the choice between active and passive investing,…
- a growth recessionA growth recession is an economics term that on first reading can seem contradictory.
- H
- a haircut in financial marketsIn financial markets, haircuts are painful rather than pleasant.
- a hedge fundAre hedge funds virtuous or villainous? Find out the basics and read both sides…
- herd behaviourWhen sheep or other animals herd, they move together at the same time.
- hindsight biasIf information sent a company’s share price on a plunge downwards, we might…
- hyperbolic discountingIf you could choose to get €50 now or €55 a year from now, which would…
- I
- the illusion of validityMark Twain famously quipped “buy land, they’re not making it anymore”,…
- an index fundAn index fund is a common way of investing money.
- index-linkingIndex-linking can protect investments against inflation. But what are the pros…
- inflationPut simply, inflation is a general rise in prices.
- influencing gold pricesGold has been a rare and gleaming asset in some investors' portfolios during…
- M
- mental accountingA couple gets a payout for a lost package of food – then they go and indulge…
- the misery indexWhen a country has high unemployment and high inflation, financial pressures…
- monetary tighteningInterest rates are going up again in several places prompting talk of "monetary…
- moneyMillions of people use money every day, yet few give much thought as to why…
- money illusionDespite its supernatural-sounding title, money illusion is firmly based in…
- moral hazardDoes being insulated from risk change the way we behave?
- R
- real termsThe phrase “in real terms” is frequently found in newspaper money sections…
- a recessionAs countries come out of the recession that hit much of the globe from 2007,…
- a recessionistaNew words have been created amid the global financial crisis.
- regret aversionImagine you decided to sell a share and then it rose in price.
- reserve currencyReserve currencies are under debate with a focus on the role of the US dollar…
- S
- a safe havenFor sailors and refugees a safe haven is a place of protection or sanctuary…
- a shareUnderstanding what shares are and how they work can be important.
- the shopping list effectGoing to the supermarket is part of the weekly routine for many people.
- stagflationStagflation is an ugly word for a nasty phenomenon - and some analysts believe…
- stamp investingRare stamps can be very valuable, in line with the well known economic rules…
- status quo bias“Don’t just do something, stand there.”
- the sunk cost trapYou have bought a ticket to a movie that – part way through – turns out…
- the sustainable growth rateIn fairytale Goldilocks & the Three Bears, the heroine finds three porridge…
