Trading stocks, or equities, is the buying and selling of shares of ownership if publicly traded companies. A company that needs to raise capital issues stocks which are traded on stock exchanges, and a trader who buys a share of stock becomes a part-owner of the company. Owning a stock in a company gives the trader the right to vote on company matters, for example approving mergers or acquisitions and electing board members.

Stocks are traded on exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Nasdaq, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and other national or regional exchanges. Traders will usually use a brokerage company to buy and sell stocks.

There are a variety of strategies and techniques used by traders to analyze the market in order to decide which stocks to buy and sell. These include fundamental analysis, technical analysis and quantitative analysis.

Stock trading can potentially generate long-term returns and build wealth over time. However, buying and selling stocks can be risky, because prices can be highly volatile. Traders should consider their risk tolerance before entering the stock market.

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Disclosure: 80% of retail CFD accounts lose money. Plus500 does not offer spread betting, social trading, or bonds. Furthermore, hedging is strictly prohibited on the Plus500 CFD platform.