1.
Stock exchange
–
A stock exchange or bourse is an exchange where stock brokers and traders can buy and/or sell stocks, bonds, and other securities. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for issue and redemption of securities and other financial instruments, Securities traded on a stock exchange include stock issued by listed companies, unit trusts, derivatives, pooled investment products and bonds. Stock exchanges often function as continuous auction markets, with buyers and sellers consummating transactions at a central location, to be able to trade a security on a certain stock exchange, it must be listed there. Trade on an exchange is restricted to brokers who are members of the exchange, the initial public offering of stocks and bonds to investors is by definition done in the primary market and subsequent trading is done in the secondary market. A stock exchange is often the most important component of a stock market, supply and demand in stock markets are driven by various factors that, as in all free markets, affect the price of stocks. There is usually no obligation for stock to be issued via the exchange itself. Such trading may be off exchange or over-the-counter and this is the usual way that derivatives and bonds are traded. Increasingly, stock exchanges are part of a securities market. The idea of debt dates back to the ancient world, as evidenced for example by ancient Mesopotamian clay tablets recording interest-bearing loans, there is little consensus among scholars as to when corporate stock was first traded. Some see the key event as the Dutch East India Companys founding in 1602, economist Ulrike Malmendier of the University of California at Berkeley argues that a share market existed as far back as ancient Rome. One such service was the feeding of geese on the Capitoline Hill as a reward to the birds after their honking warned of a Gallic invasion in 390 B. C. Participants in such organizations had partes or shares, a concept mentioned various times by the statesman, in one speech, Cicero mentions shares that had a very high price at the time. Such evidence, in Malmendiers view, suggests the instruments were tradable, the societas declined into obscurity in the time of the emperors, as most of their services were taken over by direct agents of the state. Tradable bonds as a used type of security were a more recent innovation, spearheaded by the Italian city-states of the late medieval. While the Italian city-states produced the first transferable government bonds, they did not develop the other ingredient necessary to produce a fully fledged capital market, the Dutch East India Company became the first company to offer shares of stock. Control of the company was held tightly by its directors, with shareholders not having much influence on management or even access to the companys accounting statements. However, shareholders were rewarded well for their investment, the company paid an average dividend of over 16 percent per year from 1602 to 1650. Financial innovation in Amsterdam took many forms, by the 1620s, the company was expanding its securities issuance with the first use of corporate bonds
2.
Italy
–
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
3.
United States dollar
–
The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States and its insular territories per the United States Constitution. It is divided into 100 smaller cent units, the circulating paper money consists of Federal Reserve Notes that are denominated in United States dollars. The U. S. dollar was originally commodity money of silver as enacted by the Coinage Act of 1792 which determined the dollar to be 371 4/16 grain pure or 416 grain standard silver, the currency most used in international transactions, it is the worlds primary reserve currency. Several countries use it as their currency, and in many others it is the de facto currency. Besides the United States, it is used as the sole currency in two British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands. A few countries use the Federal Reserve Notes for paper money, while the country mints its own coins, or also accepts U. S. coins that can be used as payment in U. S. dollars. After Nixon shock of 1971, USD became fiat currency, Article I, Section 8 of the U. S. Constitution provides that the Congress has the power To coin money, laws implementing this power are currently codified at 31 U. S. C. Section 5112 prescribes the forms in which the United States dollars should be issued and these coins are both designated in Section 5112 as legal tender in payment of debts. The Sacagawea dollar is one example of the copper alloy dollar, the pure silver dollar is known as the American Silver Eagle. Section 5112 also provides for the minting and issuance of other coins and these other coins are more fully described in Coins of the United States dollar. The Constitution provides that a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and that provision of the Constitution is made specific by Section 331 of Title 31 of the United States Code. The sums of money reported in the Statements are currently being expressed in U. S. dollars, the U. S. dollar may therefore be described as the unit of account of the United States. The word dollar is one of the words in the first paragraph of Section 9 of Article I of the Constitution, there, dollars is a reference to the Spanish milled dollar, a coin that had a monetary value of 8 Spanish units of currency, or reales. In 1792 the U. S. Congress passed a Coinage Act, Section 20 of the act provided, That the money of account of the United States shall be expressed in dollars, or units. And that all accounts in the offices and all proceedings in the courts of the United States shall be kept and had in conformity to this regulation. In other words, this act designated the United States dollar as the unit of currency of the United States, unlike the Spanish milled dollar the U. S. dollar is based upon a decimal system of values. Both one-dollar coins and notes are produced today, although the form is significantly more common
4.
Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)
–
The Kingdom of Italy was a French client state founded in Northern Italy by Napoleon I, fully influenced by revolutionary France, that ended with his defeat and fall. Napoleon I was crowned at the Duomo di Milano, Milan on May 26 and his title was Emperor of the French and King of Italy, showing the importance of this Italian Kingdom for him. Even though the republican Constitution was never abolished, a series of Constitutional Statutes completely altered it. The second one, dating from March 29, and regulated the regency, the Great Officials of the kingdom, the Consulta, Legislative Council, and Speakers, were all merged in a Council of State, whose opinions became only optional and not binding for the king. The Legislative Body, the old parliament, remained in theory, but it never summoned after 1805, the fourth Statute, decided on February 16,1806, indicated Beauharnais as the heir to the throne. The seventh Statute, on September 21, created a new nobility of dukes, counts and barons, the eighth, in 1812, a Court of Accounts was added. The Duchy of Guastalla was annexed on May 24, with the Convention of Fontainebleau with Austria of October 10,1807, Italy ceded Monfalcone to Austria and gained Gradisca, putting the new border on the Isonzo River. The conquered Republic of Ragusa was annexed in spring 1808 by general Marmont and that was the only time in modern history that Ragusa was united to Italy. On April 2,1808, following the dissolution of the Papal States, at its maximum extent, the Kingdom had 6,700,000 inhabitants and was composed by 2,155 communes. Small changes to the borders between Italy and France in Garfagnana and Friuli came in act on August 5,1811, in practice, the Kingdom was a dependency of the French Empire. The Kingdom served as a theater in Napoleons operations against Austria during the wars of the various coalitions, trading with the United Kingdom was forbidden. The kingdom was given a new currency, replacing the local coins circulating in the country, the Italian lira, of the same size, weight. Mintage being decided by Napoleon with a decree on March 21,1806. The monetary unit was the silver lira, which was 5 grams heavy, there were multiples of £2 and £5, and precious coins of £20 and £40. The army of the kingdom, inserted into the Grande Armée, in the course of its existence from 1805 to 1814 the Kingdom of Italy provided Napoleon I with roughly around 200,000 soldiers. In 1805 Italian troops served on duty along the English Channel, during 1806-1807 they took part in the sieges of Kolberg and Danzig. From 1808 to 1813 whole Italian divisions served in Spain, especially distinguishing themselves under Suchet at Tarragona and Saguntum. In 1809, Eugènes Army of Italy formed the wing of Napoleon Is invasion of the Austrian Empire, winning a considerable victory at Raab
5.
Economy of Italy
–
The economy of Italy is the 3rd-largest national economy in the eurozone, the 8th-largest by nominal GDP in the world, and the 12th-largest by GDP. The country is a member of the European Union, the Eurozone, the OECD, the G7. Italy is the eighth largest exporter in the world with $514 billion exported in 2016 and its closest trade ties are with the other countries of the European Union, with whom it conducts about 59% of its total trade. The largest trading partners, in order of market share, are Germany, France, United States, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and Spain. According to the Human Development Index, the country enjoys a high standard of living. Italy owns the worlds third-largest gold reserve, and is the third net contributor to the budget of the European Union, Italy is the largest market for luxury goods in Europe and the countrys private wealth is one of the largest in the world. Despite these important achievements, the economy today suffers from structural and non-structural problems. After strong GDP growth in 1945–1990, the last two decades average annual growth rates lagged below the EU average, moreover, Italy was hit hard by the late-2000s recession. The stagnation in economic growth, and the efforts to revive it with massive government spending from the 1980s onwards. After the unification, industrialization was largely artisanal, and located in the former political capitals, the resulting Italian diaspora concerned nearly 26 million Italians, the most part immigrated in the period 1880–1914, and it is considered the biggest mass migration of contemporary times. During the Great War, the Italian Royal Army increased in size and this came at a terrible cost, by the end of the war, Italy had lost 700,000 soldiers and had a budget deficit of billions of lira. Italy emerged from World War I in a poor and weakened condition, the National Fascist Party of Benito Mussolini came to power in 1922, at the end of a period of social unrest. However, once Mussolini acquired a firmer hold of power, laissez-faire and free trade were progressively abandoned in favour of government intervention, in 1929, Italy was hit hard by the Great Depression. A number of mixed entities were formed, whose purpose it was to bring representatives of the government. These representatives discussed economic policy and manipulated prices and wages so as to both the wishes of the government and the wishes of business. This economic model based on a partnership between government and business was extended to the political sphere, in what came to be known as corporatism. At the same time, the foreign policy of Mussolini led to an increasing military expenditure. After the invasion of Ethiopia, Italy intervened to support Francos nationalists in the Spanish Civil War, by 1939, Italy had the highest percentage of state-owned enterprises after the Soviet Union
6.
Stock trader
–
A stock trader or equity trader or share trader is a person or company involved in trading equity securities. Stock traders may be an agent, hedger, arbitrageur, speculator, a stock investor is an individual or company who puts money to use by the purchase of equity securities, offering potential profitable returns, as interest, income, or appreciation in value. This buy-and-hold long term strategy is passive in nature, as opposed to speculation, many stock speculators will trade bonds as well. Stock speculators are often categorized as stock traders, if trading in that capacity. Individuals or firms trading equity on the markets as their principal capacity are often called stock traders. Stock speculators usually try to profit from price volatility with trades lasting anywhere from several seconds to several weeks. The stock speculator is usually a professional, persons can call themselves full or part-time stock traders/investors while maintaining other professions. When a stock speculator/investor has clients, and acts as a manager or adviser with the intention of adding value to their clients finances. In this case, the manager could be an independent professional or a large bank corporation employee. These organized investors, are referred to as institutional investors. Several different types of trading strategies or approaches exist including day trading, trend following, market making, scalping, momentum trading, trading the news. They rely primarily on fundamental analysis for their investment decisions and fully recognize stock shares as part-ownership in the company, however, during the 2001-2003 equity bear market, the buy-and-hold strategy lost some followers as broader market indexes like the NASDAQ saw their values decline by over 60%. Stock traders advise shareholders and help manage portfolios, traders engage in buying and selling bonds, stocks, futures and shares in hedge funds. A stock trader also conducts research and observation of how financial markets perform. Other duties of a stock trader include comparison of financial analysis to current, professional stock traders who work for a financial company, are required to complete an internship of up to four months before becoming established in their career field. In the United States, for example, internship is followed up by taking and passing a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority-administered Series 63 or 65 exam, Stock traders who pass demonstrate familiarity with U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission compliant practices and regulation. Stock traders with experience usually obtain a degree in a financial. Supervisory positions as a trader may usually require an MBA for advanced stock market analysis, the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that growth for stock and commodities traders was forecast to be greater than 21% between 2006 and 2016
7.
Milan
–
Milan is a city in Italy, capital of the Lombardy region, and the most populous metropolitan area and the second most populous comune in Italy. The population of the city proper is 1,351,000, Milan has a population of about 8,500,000 people. It is the industrial and financial centre of Italy and one of global significance. In terms of GDP, it has the largest economy among European non-capital cities, Milan is considered part of the Blue Banana and lies at the heart of one of the Four Motors for Europe. Milan is an Alpha leading global city, with strengths in the arts, commerce, design, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, services, research, and tourism. Its business district hosts Italys Stock Exchange and the headquarters of the largest national and international banks, the city is a major world fashion and design capital, well known for several international events and fairs, including Milan Fashion Week and the Milan Furniture Fair. The city hosts numerous cultural institutions, academies and universities, with 11% of the national total enrolled students, Milans museums, theatres and landmarks attract over 9 million visitors annually. Milan – after Naples – is the second Italian city with the highest number of accredited stars from the Michelin Guide, the city hosted the Universal Exposition in 1906 and 2015. Milan is home to two of Europes major football teams, A. C. Milan and F. C. Internazionale, the etymology of Milan is uncertain. One theory holds that the Latin name Mediolanum comes from the Latin words medio, however, some scholars believe lanum comes from the Celtic root lan, meaning an enclosure or demarcated territory in which Celtic communities used to build shrines. Hence, Mediolanum could signify the central town or sanctuary of a Celtic tribe, indeed, the name Mediolanum is borne by about sixty Gallo-Roman sites in France, e. g. Saintes and Évreux. Alciato credits Ambrose for his account, around 400 BC, the Celtic Insubres settled Milan and the surrounding region. In 222 BC, the Romans conquered the settlement, renaming it Mediolanum, Milan was eventually declared the capital of the Western Roman Empire by Emperor Diocletian in 286 AD. Diocletian chose to stay in the Eastern Roman Empire and his colleague Maximianus ruled the Western one, immediately Maximian built several monuments, such as a large circus 470 m ×85 m, the Thermae Herculeae, a large complex of imperial palaces and several other buildings. With the Edict of Milan of 313, Emperor Constantine I guaranteed freedom of religion for Christians, after the city was besieged by the Visigoths in 402, the imperial residence was moved to Ravenna. In 452, the Huns overran the city, in 539, the Ostrogoths conquered and destroyed Milan during the Gothic War against Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. In the summer of 569, a Teutonic tribe, the Lombards, conquered Milan, some Roman structures remained in use in Milan under Lombard rule. Milan surrendered to the Franks in 774 when Charlemagne took the title of King of the Lombards, the Iron Crown of Lombardy dates from this period
8.
London Stock Exchange Group
–
The London Stock Exchange Group plc is a British-based stock exchange and financial information company. It is headquartered in London, United Kingdom and it owns the Borsa Italiana, MillenniumIT, Russell Investments, FTSE International, Exactpro, majority stake in LCH, majority stake in MTS and the London Stock Exchange. The London Stock Exchange was founded in Sweetings Alley in London in 1801 and it moved to Capel Court the following year. In 1972 the Exchange moved to a new building and trading floor in Threadneedle Street. Deregulation, sometimes known as big bang, came in 1986, in 1995 the Alternative Investment Market was launched and in 2004 the Exchange moved again, this time to Paternoster Square. Nasdaq built up a stake of over 30% in the Exchange in 2007 in a attempt to acquire it. It has since sold its investment, in 2007 the Exchange acquired the Milan-based Borsa Italiana for 1. 6bn euro to form the London Stock Exchange Group plc. The combination was intended to diversify the LSEs product offering and customer base, the all-share deal diluted the stakes of existing LSE shareholders, with Borsa Italiana shareholders receiving new shares representing 28 per cent of the enlarged register. On 16 September 2009, the London Stock Exchange Group agreed to acquire Millennium Information Technologies, Ltd. a Sri Lankan-based software company specialising in trading systems, the acquisition was completed on 19 October 2009. On 9 February 2011 TMX Group, operator of the Toronto Stock Exchange agreed to join forces with the London Stock Exchange Group in a described by TMX head Tom Kloet as a merger of equals. The deal, subject to government approval would create the worlds largest exchange operator for mining stocks, in the UK the LSE Group first announced it as a takeover, however in Canada the deal was reported as a merger. The provisional name for the group would be LTMX Group plc. On 13 June 2011, a rival, and hostile bid from the Maple Group of Canadian interests, was unveiled for the TMX Group. This was a cash and stock bid of $3.7 billion CAD, the group was composed of the leading banks and financial institutions of Canada. In July 2012, the LSE bought a 5% stake in Delhi Stock Exchange, on 2 June 2014, the LSE became the 10th stock exchange to join the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative. On 26 June 2014, the LSE announced it had agreed to buy Frank Russell Co. making it one of the largest providers of index services. In January 2015, Reuters reported that the London Stock Exchange Group planned to put Russell Investments up for sale, in March 2016, the company announced it had reached an agreement with Deutsche Börse to merge. The companies will be brought under a new holding company, UK TopCo, on February 25,2017, the London Stock Exchange Group PLC stated it wouldnt sell its fixed-income trading platform in Italy to Deutsche Börse AG, to appease anti-trust concerns
9.
Stock
–
The stock of a corporation is constituted of the equity stock of its owners. A single share of the stock represents fractional ownership of the corporation in proportion to the number of shares. In liquidation, the stock represents the residual assets of the company that would be due to stockholders after discharge of all senior claims such as secured and unsecured debt. Stockholders equity cannot be withdrawn from the company in a way that is intended to be detrimental to the companys creditors, the stock of a corporation is partitioned into shares, the total of which are stated at the time of business formation. Additional shares may subsequently be authorized by the shareholders and issued by the company. In some jurisdictions, each share of stock has a certain declared par value, in other jurisdictions, however, shares of stock may be issued without associated par value. Shares represent a fraction of ownership in a business, a business may declare different types of shares, each having distinctive ownership rules, privileges, or share values. Ownership of shares may be documented by issuance of a stock certificate. A stock certificate is a document that specifies the amount of shares owned by the shareholder. Stock typically takes the form of shares of common stock or preferred stock. As a unit of ownership, common stock typically carries voting rights that can be exercised in corporate decisions, shares of such stock are called convertible preferred shares. New equity issue may have specific legal clauses attached that differentiate them from previous issues of the issuer. Some shares of stock may be issued without the typical voting rights, for instance, or some shares may have special rights unique to them. Often, new issues that have not been registered with a governing body may be restricted from resale for certain periods of time. Preferred stock may be hybrid by having the qualities of bonds of fixed returns and they also have preference in the payment of dividends over common stock and also have been given preference at the time of liquidation over common stock. They have other features of accumulation in dividend, Rule 144 Stock is an American term given to shares of stock subject to SEC Rule 144, Selling Restricted and Control Securities. Under Rule 144, restricted and controlled securities are acquired in unregistered form, investors either purchase or take ownership of these securities through private sales from the issuing company or from an affiliate of the issuer. Investors wishing to sell these securities are subject to different rules than those selling traditional common or preferred stock and these individuals will only be allowed to liquidate their securities after meeting the specific conditions set forth by SEC Rule 144
10.
Capital market
–
A capital market is a financial market in which long-term debt or equity-backed securities are bought and sold. Capital markets are defined as markets in money is provided for periods longer than a year. Capital markets channel the wealth of savers to those who can put it to productive use. There are many thousands of systems, most serving only small parts of the overall capital markets. Entities hosting the systems include stock exchanges, investment banks, physically the systems are hosted all over the world, though they tend to be concentrated in financial centres like London, New York, and Hong Kong. A capital market can be either a primary market or a secondary market, in primary markets, new stock or bond issues are sold to investors, often via a mechanism known as underwriting. The main entities seeking to raise funds on the primary capital markets are governments. Governments issue only bonds, whereas companies often issue either equity or bonds, the main entities purchasing the bonds or stock include pension funds, hedge funds, sovereign wealth funds, and less commonly wealthy individuals and investment banks trading on their own behalf. In the secondary markets, existing securities are sold and bought among investors or traders, usually on an exchange, over-the-counter, or elsewhere. The existence of secondary markets increases the willingness of investors in primary markets, a second important division falls between the stock markets and the bond markets. The money markets are used for the raising of short term finance, whereas the capital markets are used for the raising of long term finance, such as the purchase of shares, or for loans that are not expected to be fully paid back for at least a year. Funds borrowed from the markets are typically used for general operating expenses. For example, a company may have inbound payments from customers that have not yet cleared, when a company borrows from the primary capital markets, often the purpose is to invest in additional physical capital goods, which will be used to help increase its income. It can take months or years before the investment generates sufficient return to pay back its cost. Together, money markets and capital markets form the financial markets as the term is narrowly understood, the capital market is concerned with long term finance. In the widest sense, it consists of a series of channels through which the savings of the community are available for industrial and commercial enterprises. Regular bank lending is not usually classed as a market transaction. A key difference is that with a bank loan, the lending is not securitised
11.
Euro
–
Outside of Europe, a number of overseas territories of EU members also use the euro as their currency. Additionally,210 million people worldwide as of 2013 use currencies pegged to the euro, the euro is the second largest reserve currency as well as the second most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar. The name euro was adopted on 16 December 1995 in Madrid. The euro was introduced to world markets as an accounting currency on 1 January 1999. While the euro dropped subsequently to US$0.8252 within two years, it has traded above the U. S. dollar since the end of 2002, peaking at US$1.6038 on 18 July 2008. In July 2012, the euro fell below US$1.21 for the first time in two years, following concerns raised over Greek debt and Spains troubled banking sector, as of 26 March 2017, the euro–dollar exchange rate stands at ~ US$1.07. The euro is managed and administered by the Frankfurt-based European Central Bank, as an independent central bank, the ECB has sole authority to set monetary policy. The Eurosystem participates in the printing, minting and distribution of notes and coins in all states. The 1992 Maastricht Treaty obliges most EU member states to adopt the euro upon meeting certain monetary and budgetary convergence criteria, all nations that have joined the EU since 1993 have pledged to adopt the euro in due course. Since 5 January 2002, the central banks and the ECB have issued euro banknotes on a joint basis. Euro banknotes do not show which central bank issued them, Eurosystem NCBs are required to accept euro banknotes put into circulation by other Eurosystem members and these banknotes are not repatriated. The ECB issues 8% of the value of banknotes issued by the Eurosystem. In practice, the ECBs banknotes are put into circulation by the NCBs and these liabilities carry interest at the main refinancing rate of the ECB. The euro is divided into 100 cents, in Community legislative acts the plural forms of euro and cent are spelled without the s, notwithstanding normal English usage. Otherwise, normal English plurals are used, with many local variations such as centime in France. All circulating coins have a side showing the denomination or value. Due to the plurality in the European Union, the Latin alphabet version of euro is used. For the denominations except the 1-, 2- and 5-cent coins, beginning in 2007 or 2008 the old map is being replaced by a map of Europe also showing countries outside the Union like Norway
