International Indexes
Investors need to remember that the whole world is vast marketplace that interacts with and exerts tremendous influence on individual national economies and markets. Whether you have one stock or one mutual fund, keep tabs on how world markets affect your portfolio. The best way to get a snapshot of international markets is , of course, with indexes. Here are some of the more widely followed international indexes:
Nikkei (Japan):
The index is considered Japan’s version of the Dow. If you are invested in Japanese stocks or in stocks that do business with Japan, you want to know what’s up with the Nikkei.
FTST-100 (Great Britain):
Usually referred to as the “footsie,” This market-value weighted index includes the top 100 public companies in the United Kingdom
CAC-40 (France):
This index tracks the 40 public stocks that trade on the Paris Stock Exchange.
DAX (Germany):
This index tracks the 30 largest and most active stocks that trade on the Frankfurt Exchange.
Halter USX China Index (China)
This index tracks a basket of 50 U.S. Public companies that derive most of their revenues from China.
You can track these international index (among others) at the major financial Web sites, such as Bloomberg.com and Marketwatch.com You may find international indexes useful in your analysis as you watch your stock’s progress. What if you have stock in a company that has most of its customer in Japan? Then Nikkei can help you get a general snapshot of how well the major companies are doing in Japan, which in turn can be a general barometer of its economy’s well-being. If your company business partners or customers are in the Nikkei, and it’s plunging, then you know it’s probably “sayonara” for the company’s stock price.
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