Navia Markets is one of the Primary Online & Offline E-brokering Companies located in South India. The services of Navia started from1985 with an objective to make investing suitable, safe and reasonably priced. It enables both Resident Indians and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) to trade on the Internet with best recommendations and live quotes. Navia Markets are members of National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Madras Stock Exchange (MSE) as well as a Participant of National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL). Navia OffersNavia offers Equities & Derivatives Trading, Mutual Fund, Initial Public Offering (IPO) Investments, and Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), liquidation and repatriation services. One can also be a franchisee of Navia Markets. They have international clientele from countries like USA, Canada, UK, UAE, Australia, Japan, Germany, Kenya, New Zealand and many others. Navia & NRIsNavia prides itself in giving detailed trading instructions for new and existing investors. NRIs are given customized services that cater to their needs. NRIs get abundant information regarding different kinds of investments, in depth share market news, fund management, share prices, Net Asset Value (NAV) and other financial information. The profit and non profit will be shared equally between the investors and share holding participants. Navia offers daily net asset value, new fund offers and quality inputs from MF Desk. IPO: When a company issues a common stocks or shares to the public for the first time, in order to expand its capital it is commonly known as Initial Public Offering (IPO). Navia offers IPO services with related information such as current and forthcoming initial public offering reports, with the best recommendations from share brokers. All the above mentioned investment facilities are available for both Resident Indians and NRIs.

Stocks can be considered a tool for building wealth, as they are a part of almost every investment portfolio. They represent the ownership of a company and are bought in the form of shares. Shares refer to the stock of a particular company. Your stake in a company depends on how many shares you possess, because these are considered a part of the company’s capital.
The popularity of investing in the stock market is increasing constantly. Today, investment in stocks and shares is not limited to the well to do; even the average middle-class is getting into it in droves. The opening up of markets with advanced trading technologies has made owning shares easy for everyone. However, if you are planning to invest, do not depend on luck to get you returns. Investment in stocks is considered a very risky affair. It requires a high rate of return.
You can invest in international stocks as well. When a company performs trading in a stock market of another country, their stocks are known as International stocks. These stocks are traded like the UK stocks or, for that matter those traded in the Nasdaq in the US. All the stock exchanges in the world work in the same manner.
There is no guarantee when it comes to Investment in stocks but if you are ready to take a big risk then you can expect great returns on your investment. Despite the risk factor this form of investment has outperformed other investment options like bonds or saving accounts.

Level 2 trading is a popular way of trading UK shares because Level 2 shows the order book for every single UK-listed share at any given time. Therefore you can quickly view how many buyers and sellers there are on each side of the order book. So how can you use this information to successfully trade UK shares?
Well first and foremost the number of orders and their respective quantities of shares gives you a good indication of the future price movement of a share. This is because if there are more buyers than sellers on the order book then you would obviously expect the price to move up in the near future, and vice versa.
Level 2 allows you to view live streaming prices and shows you exactly what’s happening on the order book continuously throughout the trading day. However with that being said, it’s not necessarily as easy as that otherwise everyone who uses Level 2 would be very wealthy.
One of the main problems, and a common annoyance amongst traders, are market makers. These people can effectively control the order book, particularly on smaller stocks where they essentially make up the order book. So they can easily raise and drop their order prices and move a company’s share price, even without any orders being placed.
They even have a significant impact on the larger shares, although to a lesser extent because there are a lot of other orders on the order book from ordinary traders as well. In fact these other people can also be a problem because due to the fact that anyone with direct market access can place orders onto the order book, it means that there is a lot of market manipulation going on.
For instance it’s very easy to place a large trade 1 or 2% away from the current market price in order to encourage traders into either buying or selling. Of course the person does not want to see this order get taken out, and will remove this order straight away if it looks like getting taken out. It’s only purpose is to give the illusion that there’s a large buyer or seller in the wings in order to influence other traders.
So these are just a few of the problems you will come up against when using Level 2. It is unquestionably a useful tool and can be a useful tool for predicting future price movements in a lot of cases, but it’s certainly not a foolproof way of making money from UK share trading.

Renting shares is fast becoming one of the most talked about Stock Market Investment strategies. More and more investors are looking at creating income from their shares and capital growth from property. But what is share renting? Is it legal and can anybody do it? Let’s have a look at the basic concept of renting shares and see if this investment strategy is something that everybody should have a look at. Renting out shares is very similar to leasing out your property for rent. The basic share renting strategy is as follows. Step 1/ Buy a parcel of shares. If you are in Australia you will need to buy in lots of 1000 whereas in the US you can buy in lots of 100. Step 2/ Sell a one month call option, one strike price out of the money. Step 3/ Enjoy yourself for the month e. g. Go to the beach, watch the footy etc. Step 4/ This will depend on where the share price is at the end of the month. Read below for more details on renting shares. Now if this doesn’t make much sense I will now try to explain it in some more detail. The reason why you need to buy your shares in groups of 100 (1000 in Australia) relates to step 2. Call options are sold in lots of 100 shares e. g. If you buy 1 call option you are actually buying a call option for 100 shares. What is a call option? A call option gives the buyer the right but not the obligation to buy a set number of shares, on or before a set date, at a predetermined price. For example Lets say the stock ABC was trading at $100 and somebody bought a call option at $105 that lasted for one month. This would give them the right to buy ABC at $105 no matter what the actual price of ABC was at anytime during the next month. In order to get this right, the person buying the call will need to pay the seller a premium. This is where we come in. People that rent out their shares get paid by the people who buy call options. So let’s say we buy 100 ABC shares at $100. The next thing we would do is sell a covered call (it is called covered because we actually own the shares) at $105. We always want to sell a call option that is out of the money (above the actual price of the share). Why because that way if we are forced to sell our shares we will at least be forced to take a profit. For selling a one month call at $105 we are likely to receive about 3-6% of the shares price. So in this case let’s assume that we receive $5 per share. I’m sure you don’t need any help with step 3 but you might be wondering why we can simply forget about our shares rather than monitoring them each day. The answer is simply because we aren’t too concerned whether they share price goes up or down. Why? Well lets now have a look at what would happen should the share price go up, down or sideways. Share price goes up above $105 to $108. We will be forced to sell our shares for $105 despite their actual price being $108. This sounds like a very bad out come but if you have a closer look it is actually a great outcome. We bought our shares for $100, sold them for $105 and also got paid $5 for the month. Therefore we actually made a $10 profit whereas if we had of just bought the shares instead of renting them out we would have only made $8. Share price goes sideways and remains at $100. We will get to keep our shares because no one is going to pay $105 for shares that could be bought for $100 on the open market. So in this case we have made a profit of $5 whereas if we hadn’t rented our shares we wouldn’t have made one cent. Share price goes down to $95 Once again we will keep our shares. Had we not rented out our shares we would have lost $5 but because we received the $5 premium we actually don’t loose a cent. So as you can see renting shares is actually quite a safe wealth creation strategy. Effectively what you are doing is trading of your potential to make a massive gain in one month for a regular monthly income. Which one is better? Well if you average out your percentage returns from share renting over the year you may be surprised at how effective it can be. Share renting returns generally fluctuate from 20-80% per annum. With a modest average of about 40% – better than bank interest I’m sure you will agree.

 
  
 
 
 
 
Article on “GOLDEN SHARES”
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
By:
Samant Kumar
5th year BBA LLB,
Symbiosis Law School,Pune.
 
 
 
 
 
 
INTRODUCTION
 
The concept of State has changed drastically from kingship to democratic. Industrialization has even changed the concept of democratic to Welfare state. As the concept of privatization was introduced for the working of a particular industry. When considering the privatization of an industry, governments often wants to protect what they feel are vital national interests. More often than not these interests are principally political: a government wants to veto the possibility that a key utility or defense function could be bought by a foreign investor, for example. How then to privatize a company, and attract new investment into it, while ensuring that important national interest are protected?
The idea can be that of golden share. This term first came into picture Margret Thatcher’s administration in United Kingdom launched its privatization programme in 1980’s. During that period, the government used to retain a special share, often referred to as a golden share, to protect the ‘public interest’.
 
What is a Golden Share?
 
A type of share which gives the shareholders (basically government) a veto power over changes to the company charter. They are a means of protecting key national interests, and are limited to certain specified in the company’s articles of association, and confer no right to interfere on other issues.
A share with special voting rights that give it peculiar power vis-à-vis other share. The term applies particularly to share retained by a government after privatization. If a government wishes to sell off a company in a sensitive industry (say defence) and yet retain control, it can hold on to a golden share. This might give it the right to veto any takeover bid.
 
Characteristics of Golden Share
 
Not of Gold- the shares are not made of gold! They are the power, which the government reserves with him to be used in deciding vital issues.  
No power of discretional control- Golden shares does not give government any power to control privatized enterprises as they see fit. Their function is not to allow politicians to retain control over a newly privatized business, but to prevent a specified number of dangers being realized.  
Yields government special rights- The real beauty of the golden share idea is that while it affords the government special rights, the government can choose not to exercise them. For example, the British government stood aside and allowed Ford to take over Jaguar and British Petroleum to acquire Britoil. Similarly, Singapore relinquished its special golden-share rights in ST Industrial Corporation, ST capital and ST Computer Systems & Services when the government determined that special protection was no longer necessary for these companies.  
Functions to appease opponents of privatization- The golden share is in essence a solution that addresses primarily political, rather that legal or economic, concerns. It functions to appease opponents of privatization.  
Irony of the golden share- The irony of the golden share is that although it appears regressive in an era of economic liberalization, it has been used by reformers to provide political cover. With it, privatization may be made palatable enough to be pushed through the political process.  
Surrender of golden shares- Mindful of the dangers, the UK government tried to ensure that golden shares had a limited lifetime. It actually used the veto power of golden shares only twice. And in practice, UK government have often chosen to surrender golden shares once privatized enterprises have become firmly established.  
Golden share-Comparative Analysis
 Shark Repellent- The concept of golden share is diagonally opposite to shark repellent which talks of ‘any number of measures taken by a corporation to discourage an unwanted takeover attempt’.  
 Laissez faire- An economic theory from 18th century that is strongly opposed to any government intervention in business affairs. Sometimes referred to as “Let it be economics”. Laissez faire is French for “leave alone”. The concept of golden share is diagonally opposite to this concept to this concept of Laissez faire.  
Types of golden shares-
 
Two types have been employed: Ones without time limit and the other with the limit (or for specified period). This is usually created to ward off unwelcome takeover bids on the grounds of national security.
Those with limits are generally held by government for a specific period, created to allow privatized companies time to adjust to operating in the private sector. This type is basically prevalent in India.
 
 
Usages of this technique in some countries
 
In UK
 
Even after that the United Kingdom, supposedly the first to the nations to embark upon widespread privatization of its electricity industries and the worlds most ambitious and path breaking electricity privatization used the technique of golden share to leverage the governments dominion over the electricity industry in power generation companies.
 
In Japan
 
On March 2005, several key policy and political decisions on Postal Reform were to be made in Japan. The postal industry of Japan was to be privatized. Recent press reports suggested the ten-year limit on completing privatization, the stock holding relationship among the Postal Holding Company and the new entities, and a provision for “golden shares” which would have the right to block some major decisions.
 
In Malaysia
 
In Malaysia, the golden share was used in the sale of shares in Malaysia Airlines, Telekom Malaysia, Perwaja Steel and many other companies.
 
In Singapore
 
Similarly, the Singapore government is currently devising a golden share for ST engineering, the conglomerate to be formed from part of Singapore Technologies.
 
In China
 
Even China, the communist country of the world used the concept of golden share to bring about the goods of privatization. China’s top leaders have vowed to reform the country’s hemorrhaging state-owned enterprise sector and fro this purpose they used the golden share idea. The golden share was used so that it may be used to assure those Chinese Communist Party cadres whose parents fought for the 1949 Liberation that the state is not selling the shop.
 
Usages in India
 
The government is considering acquiring a Golden Share in public sector banks to allow them more headroom to raise fresh capital from the market. A golden share would allow the government to hold a minimum of 51% stake in a bank even if the actual government stake has fallen below that mark on account of fresh capital being raised. The left parties, an ally in the UPA government, had insisted that the government stake in banks must not fall below 51%. The golden share will help meet this objective.
During the disinvestment of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, there was no golden share clause as the government could veto any resolution made by the board of directors of the divested entity by virtue of holding one token share in it.
On 7th October’2007, State bank of India chairman O. P. Bhatt had said the government should consider having a ‘golden share’ to retain control over the public sector banks while allowing them to raise capital through a restructuring plan. The public sector banks could lose out totally to foreign or private banks in meeting the fast increasing capital needs of the corporate world, particularly for the mergers and acquisition, unless the nationalized banks are equipped to augment their capital.
 
 
GOLDEN SHARE: How and when issued
 
There should be a clause in Articles of Association. This is a tool used in some countries (notably the UK and France). During privatizations, when some restrictions on ownership were deemed important in the public interest the government issues golden share. This share typically, is a single golden share of a company, owned by the government, which has no ability to influence day-to-day management but has the power to assert its influence in major decisions of the company such as amendment of certain provisions in the articles of association, foreign interests being able to acquire more than a certain percentage of the shares. Prevent hostile takeovers which a government judges against the public interest, Restrict the issue of new voting shares etc.
Golden shares are usually retained by the state in infrastructure policies, utilities, natural monopolies, mining operations, defense contractors, and the space industry. They allow their holders to block business moves and counter management decisions, which may be detrimental to national security, to the economy, or to the provision of public services (especially where markets fail to do so). Golden shares also enable the government to regulate the prices of certain basic goods and services – such as energy, food staples, sewage, and water.
 
Conclusion
 
With the introduction of golden share it will not lead to a smooth privatization of any company. It can be abused by less scrupulous governments in order to maintain political control over an enterprise while nominally privatizing it and collecting the financial proceeds from the sale. Investors might also be wary of the potential abuse of government power through the golden share.
If we look at the other side of the introduction of golden share then we will realize it can prevent takeovers which a government judges against the public interest. It will also place constraints on the disposal of asset illegally. When a company is being wounded up, it imposes a restriction on the same. It guarantees the place of government appointed directors on the board.
Special features of making provision for golden share in the privatized entity can prove to be a double-edged sword and it may give protection to the government in certain sensitive circumstances but leave the government with the risk of incurring the wrath of shareholders who would be denied the right to accept what might be a very attractive offer for their shares. Therefore in the end I would like to conclude by saying that the power of golden share should be used very cautiously and in rare circumstances.
           
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
 
Books and treatises
 
Ira W. Liberman, Between State and Market: Mass Privatization in Transition Economies, 1997.  
Dominique Pannier, Corporate Governance of Public Enterprises in Transitional Economies, 1996.  
Cosmo Graham, John MacInnes, Tony Prosser, Industrial Relations and Economic Change, 1988.  
Subhash C. Jain, Emerging Economies and the Transformation of International Business, 2006.  
M. L Sondhi, Towards a new Era: Economic, Social, and Political Reforms, 2007.  
Avtar Singh, Company Law, 2004.  
N. D. Kapoor, Company Law, 2004. Journals
 
University of Allahabad, Indian Journal of Economics, 1916.  
 
Websites
 
http://www. sebi. gov. in/capitalmarkets/ (visited on 2nd August, 2008 at 7:47 pm).  
http://www. mca. gov. in/foreigninvestment/ (visited on 3rd August, 2008 at 3:31pm).  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
Article on “GOLDEN SHARES”
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
By:
Samant Kumar
5th year BBA LLB,
Symbiosis Law School,Pune.
 
 
 
 
 
 
INTRODUCTION
 
The concept of State has changed drastically from kingship to democratic. Industrialization has even changed the concept of democratic to Welfare state. As the concept of privatization was introduced for the working of a particular industry. When considering the privatization of an industry, governments often wants to protect what they feel are vital national interests. More often than not these interests are principally political: a government wants to veto the possibility that a key utility or defense function could be bought by a foreign investor, for example. How then to privatize a company, and attract new investment into it, while ensuring that important national interest are protected?
The idea can be that of golden share. This term first came into picture Margret Thatcher’s administration in United Kingdom launched its privatization programme in 1980’s. During that period, the government used to retain a special share, often referred to as a golden share, to protect the ‘public interest’.
 
What is a Golden Share?
 
A type of share which gives the shareholders (basically government) a veto power over changes to the company charter. They are a means of protecting key national interests, and are limited to certain specified in the company’s articles of association, and confer no right to interfere on other issues.
A share with special voting rights that give it peculiar power vis-à-vis other share. The term applies particularly to share retained by a government after privatization. If a government wishes to sell off a company in a sensitive industry (say defence) and yet retain control, it can hold on to a golden share. This might give it the right to veto any takeover bid.
 
Characteristics of Golden Share
 
Not of Gold- the shares are not made of gold! They are the power, which the government reserves with him to be used in deciding vital issues.  
No power of discretional control- Golden shares does not give government any power to control privatized enterprises as they see fit. Their function is not to allow politicians to retain control over a newly privatized business, but to prevent a specified number of dangers being realized.  
Yields government special rights- The real beauty of the golden share idea is that while it affords the government special rights, the government can choose not to exercise them. For example, the British government stood aside and allowed Ford to take over Jaguar and British Petroleum to acquire Britoil. Similarly, Singapore relinquished its special golden-share rights in ST Industrial Corporation, ST capital and ST Computer Systems & Services when the government determined that special protection was no longer necessary for these companies.  
Functions to appease opponents of privatization- The golden share is in essence a solution that addresses primarily political, rather that legal or economic, concerns. It functions to appease opponents of privatization.  
Irony of the golden share- The irony of the golden share is that although it appears regressive in an era of economic liberalization, it has been used by reformers to provide political cover. With it, privatization may be made palatable enough to be pushed through the political process.  
Surrender of golden shares- Mindful of the dangers, the UK government tried to ensure that golden shares had a limited lifetime. It actually used the veto power of golden shares only twice. And in practice, UK government have often chosen to surrender golden shares once privatized enterprises have become firmly established.  
Golden share-Comparative Analysis
 Shark Repellent- The concept of golden share is diagonally opposite to shark repellent which talks of ‘any number of measures taken by a corporation to discourage an unwanted takeover attempt’.  
 Laissez faire- An economic theory from 18th century that is strongly opposed to any government intervention in business affairs. Sometimes referred to as “Let it be economics”. Laissez faire is French for “leave alone”. The concept of golden share is diagonally opposite to this concept to this concept of Laissez faire.  
Types of golden shares-
 
Two types have been employed: Ones without time limit and the other with the limit (or for specified period). This is usually created to ward off unwelcome takeover bids on the grounds of national security.
Those with limits are generally held by government for a specific period, created to allow privatized companies time to adjust to operating in the private sector. This type is basically prevalent in India.
 
 
Usages of this technique in some countries
 
In UK
 
Even after that the United Kingdom, supposedly the first to the nations to embark upon widespread privatization of its electricity industries and the worlds most ambitious and path breaking electricity privatization used the technique of golden share to leverage the governments dominion over the electricity industry in power generation companies.
 
In Japan
 
On March 2005, several key policy and political decisions on Postal Reform were to be made in Japan. The postal industry of Japan was to be privatized. Recent press reports suggested the ten-year limit on completing privatization, the stock holding relationship among the Postal Holding Company and the new entities, and a provision for “golden shares” which would have the right to block some major decisions.
 
In Malaysia
 
In Malaysia, the golden share was used in the sale of shares in Malaysia Airlines, Telekom Malaysia, Perwaja Steel and many other companies.
 
In Singapore
 
Similarly, the Singapore government is currently devising a golden share for ST engineering, the conglomerate to be formed from part of Singapore Technologies.
 
In China
 
Even China, the communist country of the world used the concept of golden share to bring about the goods of privatization. China’s top leaders have vowed to reform the country’s hemorrhaging state-owned enterprise sector and fro this purpose they used the golden share idea. The golden share was used so that it may be used to assure those Chinese Communist Party cadres whose parents fought for the 1949 Liberation that the state is not selling the shop.
 
Usages in India
 
The government is considering acquiring a Golden Share in public sector banks to allow them more headroom to raise fresh capital from the market. A golden share would allow the government to hold a minimum of 51% stake in a bank even if the actual government stake has fallen below that mark on account of fresh capital being raised. The left parties, an ally in the UPA government, had insisted that the government stake in banks must not fall below 51%. The golden share will help meet this objective.
During the disinvestment of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, there was no golden share clause as the government could veto any resolution made by the board of directors of the divested entity by virtue of holding one token share in it.
On 7th October’2007, State bank of India chairman O. P. Bhatt had said the government should consider having a ‘golden share’ to retain control over the public sector banks while allowing them to raise capital through a restructuring plan. The public sector banks could lose out totally to foreign or private banks in meeting the fast increasing capital needs of the corporate world, particularly for the mergers and acquisition, unless the nationalized banks are equipped to augment their capital.
 
 
GOLDEN SHARE: How and when issued
 
There should be a clause in Articles of Association. This is a tool used in some countries (notably the UK and France). During privatizations, when some restrictions on ownership were deemed important in the public interest the government issues golden share. This share typically, is a single golden share of a company, owned by the government, which has no ability to influence day-to-day management but has the power to assert its influence in major decisions of the company such as amendment of certain provisions in the articles of association, foreign interests being able to acquire more than a certain percentage of the shares. Prevent hostile takeovers which a government judges against the public interest, Restrict the issue of new voting shares etc.
Golden shares are usually retained by the state in infrastructure policies, utilities, natural monopolies, mining operations, defense contractors, and the space industry. They allow their holders to block business moves and counter management decisions, which may be detrimental to national security, to the economy, or to the provision of public services (especially where markets fail to do so). Golden shares also enable the government to regulate the prices of certain basic goods and services – such as energy, food staples, sewage, and water.
 
Conclusion
 
With the introduction of golden share it will not lead to a smooth privatization of any company. It can be abused by less scrupulous governments in order to maintain political control over an enterprise while nominally privatizing it and collecting the financial proceeds from the sale. Investors might also be wary of the potential abuse of government power through the golden share.
If we look at the other side of the introduction of golden share then we will realize it can prevent takeovers which a government judges against the public interest. It will also place constraints on the disposal of asset illegally. When a company is being wounded up, it imposes a restriction on the same. It guarantees the place of government appointed directors on the board.
Special features of making provision for golden share in the privatized entity can prove to be a double-edged sword and it may give protection to the government in certain sensitive circumstances but leave the government with the risk of incurring the wrath of shareholders who would be denied the right to accept what might be a very attractive offer for their shares. Therefore in the end I would like to conclude by saying that the power of golden share should be used very cautiously and in rare circumstances.
           
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
 
Books and treatises
 
Ira W. Liberman, Between State and Market: Mass Privatization in Transition Economies, 1997.  
Dominique Pannier, Corporate Governance of Public Enterprises in Transitional Economies, 1996.  
Cosmo Graham, John MacInnes, Tony Prosser, Industrial Relations and Economic Change, 1988.  
Subhash C. Jain, Emerging Economies and the Transformation of International Business, 2006.  
M. L Sondhi, Towards a new Era: Economic, Social, and Political Reforms, 2007.  
Avtar Singh, Company Law, 2004.  
N. D. Kapoor, Company Law, 2004. Journals
 
University of Allahabad, Indian Journal of Economics, 1916.  
 
Websites
 
http://www. sebi. gov. in/capitalmarkets/ (visited on 2nd August, 2008 at 7:47 pm).  
http://www. mca. gov. in/foreigninvestment/ (visited on 3rd August, 2008 at 3:31pm).  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

How To Pick Shares

Many people are able to live off of their profits from share market trading. They have learned some of the secrets of the share market and have developed their ability to be able to pick the right shares on a rather regular basis. To them, there is little risk because they know how to choose. Here are some tips to help you to pick the right shares on which to place your money.

Understand Your Own Needs for Best Share Picks

You need to make some decisions about what kind of investing you want to do before you go looking for particular shares. You may decide that you only want your money tied up for short periods instead of for the long haul. If you do not have a lot of money, or want to invest in penny share for quick profits, then short term may be the way for you to go. Or, you may want something that is generally stable enough that you do not need to follow the share market trends all the time, and just want to let it sit for the long term. Your decisions from the start will determine where you need to focus your search for the right share.

Read How Big Investors Pick Their Shares

Every now and then, you may be able to see an article that shows what techniques are used by the big companies, like Merrill and Lynch, as to how they pick their share. Since these are the experts in investments, you can be sure that there are real nuggets of information and tips that you can use in news of this kind.

Sometimes, the information may even be put in a way that shows you what factors they rely on most heavily for their decisions. This information is unsurpassable to help you know how to pick the share that you want to place your money on.

Look At the Big Picture

The economy always goes through various cycles. With each cycle you will find that certain industries and companies fluctuate with the economy at that time. Other companies may not be so affected, depending on what they manufacture or service they provide. Before you invest, you want to understand what part of the cycle the market is in first, and then do your share picking from there.

Consider Tips from Experts

A number of share expert individuals share their opinion on a regular basis online. It may be a good idea for you to watch the results of their share picks for a time to see how accurate his or her information might be. If accurate, then you might want to follow some of their tips to know where to invest during that day, or week. You also might see if other experts are in agreement before you spend your money.

Look Carefully At the Company And Its Competitors

By understanding the company and its operations, as well as products, you can get a good idea of how it will perform on the share market. Its financial standing and practices, past performance, and anticipated earnings should give you a good idea of where it is going.

A company’s competitors will indicate the likelihood that one company will stay in the forefront or decline in prominence if its competitors have similar – or better product offerings.

Finally, you do not want to forget about the new software that is automatically able to show you which shares may be the most profitable at any given moment. This is often easy to use and could help you to make some real shortcuts in picking profitable share.

1. Upfront for major payment
The mode of payment is different for time shares, unlike the normal renting arrangements. The renting arrangement offers the customer, the authority to decide on the price of accommodation and on the quality. However, time share deeds must be paid a large amount of sum in this mode of payment.
2. Complacency
Owners of time shares also have a feeling of dissatisfaction because they do not have the freedom to choose other resorts. They go back to the same resort between each and every timeshare. Owners of time shares look for opportunities in which they can us their deeds to go to other resorts.
However, nowadays, time share organizations are present, which enables owners to give up their time shares in return to gain access to resorts all over the globe. The most well known organizations dealing with time shares are Interval international and Resort condominium International. Lately, many other time share organizations have been established and are on the rise.
3. Annual maintenance fees
The time share owners also complain usually about the ever increasing maintenance fees each and every year. The maintenance fee of resorts rise so fast each year that the owners find it difficult to keep with their time share intervals’ dues.
Also, many owners of time shares have been forced by financial problems to sell their deeds. Many websites advertise these.
Also, it can be seen clearly that time share deeds owners have no wish to give up their deeds. They somehow correlate the accommodation quality and cash outflow and feel that they are directly proportional.
In spite of all these complaints on time shares, the benefits provided, outweigh the complaint.
1. Time share – a real property
The innovative and new concept of marketing, time shares, began in the 1960’s. A ski resort developer in the Alps in France devised a way of increasing his ski resort’s occupancy. The guests were given the opportunity of owning the resort rather than just renting it.
The resort developer purchases lands in locations. They develop a resort especially for time shares and sell to the potential customer’s time interval deeds. This implies that the customers are given rights to do whatever they wish to do in the resort within the time interval.
2. Time share – a flexible commodity
Owners of time shares have the following options that they cane exercise using their time shares:
1. Usage of time share deed
2. Give their time share for rent
3. Give their time share as a gift
4. Exchange time share inside the resort group itself
5. Exchange time share deed with thousands of time share resorts
Time shares are flexible when it comes to ownership. Owners can choose the type of ownership they wish to exercise:
1. Ownership over a fixed week
You will be able to own a unit for just one week if you have fixed week ownership.
2. Floating ownership
You will be allowed to choose a week that suits your other schedules and get to own the deed during that season. Also, there are limitations as to the season during which you choose the week.
3. Rotating ownership
In this ownership type, a fair opportunity is given to each and every time share deed owners. Each member is given a week every year in rotation in such a way that if you get week 10 this year, you get the 11th the next year, 12 the one after and so on.
4. Deeded ownership
This kind of ownership allows the owner of the deed to do whatever they wish. These are real property as they are actually title deeds. It is also known, sometimes, as fractional ownership as, for only a particular time, you own the property.
5. Ownership over the right to use
This kind of ownership has a time limit and is valid only for a few years. Also, the owner has to follow all that is mentioned in the contract. When the date of termination of contract is reached, the ownership is automatically transferred to the developer of the property.
6. Ownership by Points
This program is a creative way of impressing guests and gets them to buy the time shares. Guests are supposed to reach the required amount of points to equal the ownership level. The new owners are then allowed to schedule accommodation in the resort for availing their time shares.

Exchange Traded Funds, better known by many investors as iShares, the brand owned by Barclays Global Investors (’BGI’) have been around in the UK since April 2000, with the launch of the iFTSE100 on the London Stock Exchange. From a slow start, by the end of 2005 (the latest figures available), some 125 billion was held in assets under management. Generally, when you look for your share price information, you’ll find them grouped in the extra MARK section, where you’ll now find some 45 different ETFs on offer. Although they have been around for sometime, let’s just remind ourselves how ETFs work.
They are listed on the stock exchange, providing the flexibility and trade ability of a share, including the fact that the price is continuously quoted, but that one share can provide instant exposure to an entire Index, giving you the diversification benefits of a fund. ETFs are also a flexible way of achieving cost-effective market exposure. Because the funds are registered in Ireland, there is no stamp duty to be paid on purchases. Management costs are taken from dividends that are accrued by the fund, and any excess income is then distributed to shareholders: unlike unit trusts, there are no initial fees to pay on the original purchase.
The price of the fund is always close to the ‘Net Asset Value’ (NAV) of the underlying investments and will usually have tight spreads, unlike some unit trusts and some investment trusts. Also ETFs will disclose their holdings everyday, whereas traditional funds usually disclose their holdings twice a year.
What can I invest in?
ETFs offer a wide range of opportunities for investment with varying levels of risk: as at mid-December there were 45 different markets/indices to invest in, ranging from corporate bonds to the Taiwanese market.
Starting at the lower end of the risk spectrum there are several corporate bond ETFs, as well as some Gilt-based investments. Moving on to the medium risk level, you can choose from global funds to ones that are more specific to individual regions, such as the US or Asia.
There’s also the option of investing in individual indices: ‘index trackers’ are available for the UK’s FTSE100 and 250 Indexes, the US S&P 500, or Europe’s Euro first 100 & 80, spanning the top European companies.
For those wanting a higher level of risk, there are also ETFs which will give you exposure to emerging markets, such as Turkey, Korea, Taiwan and Eastern Europe. ETFs don’t offer the same wide variety as unit trusts, but for investing in the countries and sectors they do cover, their charging structure and trade ability make up for this. As such, they provide a good, low cost, easily-traded route into the market, with the flexibility to move up the risk ladder as your experience and capital grows.
Finally, if you’ve an appetite for an even spicier approach, the London Stock Exchange also enables you to invest in commodities, through ETCs (Exchange Traded Commodities). Although like ETFs they are traded in the same way as shares, and are eligible to be held in a PEP or ISA, they do work in a completely different way.
Whereas ETFs actually buy the underlying investments, ETC managers don’t buy and store tons of wheat and copper, stack-up barrels of oil, or herd livestock into pens. Rather, they buy options on these commodities. As a result, ETCs are classed as more ‘complex’ investments by the FSA and you’ll need to complete a special ‘risk notice’ confirming you understand the additional risks of investing in them. So take a fresh look at ETFs – you might just find they offer you more than you thought!
Funds: take your pick of the best
Unit Trusts and Open Ended Investment Companies (OEICs) are investments that let you pool your money with lots of other ‘retail’ investors. This money is invested on your behalf by a wide range of specialist fund managers, investing in, for example, Government gilts and bonds, commercial property and equities.
Investing in funds gives you access to a highly-diversified range of investments at a reasonable cost. You will also have easy access to asset classes and international markets that would otherwise be difficult and expensive to invest in and benefit from the Fund Manager’s contacts, knowledge, experience and expertise. Funds come in many shapes and sizes from ‘trackers’ to specialist or ‘themed’ funds.
An index-tracking fund (often referred to as a ‘passively managed fund’) aims to match or ‘track’ the performance of a given market index, such as the FTSE All Share or the FTSE 100. They do this using computer programs to work out how much of each individual company they need to buy and sell to mimic the performance of the Index as a whole.
But not all ‘tracker funds’ match the Index they are tracking that well – so be sure to check their record. An ‘actively managed fund’ on the other hand employs researchers to study and engage with companies in which they plan to invest, and to keep abreast of the prospects for companies in which they already invest. They’ll compare their performance to a ‘benchmark’ index related to the investment objectives of their fund, with the expectation that the extra work they put into tracking down the ‘best’ investments will literally pay dividends through higher growth than that of their benchmark.
Choosing your funds
When you pick your funds, be sure to rate them against other funds that fish in the same waters. Don’t expect a ‘value’ fund and a ‘growth’ fund to have similar track records. Only by comparing funds with their true peers will you make a good choice. Whilst past performance should not be seen as an indication of future performance, past performance does matter when comparing like with like. Chasing winners however, is as dangerous as day-trading.
Not surprisingly, all five of the top-performing funds at the end of 1999 were technology sector funds. Sector funds have a place in many a portfolio, but for the majority of investors they belong at its edges, not at its heart.
An individual fund will give you a wider spread of underlying investments: by investing across a number of funds you’re better able to smooth out the ups and downs of the market overall. But that won’t work if it turns out that your funds hold virtually the same investments. So have a look at each fund report to see their top holdings and make sure you’ve got a good spread overall.
Individual Company shares
When it comes to the individual shares part of the investment model, the lowest risk entry point has always been recognised as companies in the FTSE 100. However, you should always bear in mind that the Index evolves over a period of time, changing its overall make-up.
Consider, for example, that over the last 6 years technology shares have fallen out of the Index, while mining companies, on the back of booming commodity prices, have dramatically increased their presence. Yet, because of the volatility and cyclical nature of the sector, individual mining groups can’t be classed as low risk.
Other ‘big names’ have gone from the Index due to take-over activity – companies like P&O, Abbey National & BAA – all of which have to be replaced.
Today, some 80% of the make-up of the overall value of the FTSE100 comes from just 5 sectors – Banking, Mining, Oil & Gas, Pharmaceuticals, and Telecoms (fixed and mobile). So, if you’re looking to the Footsie to form the bedrock of your investment in individual shares, where should you start?
Companies involved in essential, everyday products and services, such as the water and electricity utilities and broad-based retailers often provide a solid backbone to any share portfolio. You could argue, however, that the classic ‘defensive’ nature of utilities has recently been undermined by the number of take-overs within the sector. The share prices of the remaining companies have climbed to all-time highs, potentially increasing the level of risk.
There is without doubt an appetite for the assured cash flow that utilities provide, and it’s fair to say that a growing number of analysts agree it’s hard to justify the current prices. Despite this, get your timing right, buying at the right price, and these sectors should still provide a strong base on which to build your individual holdings. To extend your scope, whilst still staying within a lower risk profile, your next ports of call should be into the banks, pharmaceuticals, tobacco and beverages sectors.
Move on up to the intermediate, ‘medium risk’ level, and you’ve an increasing choice, including the remaining FTSE100 companies, dominated by the mining sector. The majority of shares in the FTSE250 would also fit into this ‘medium risk’ category. Still relatively large companies, it is these shares that have seen some of the biggest gains over the last 3 years, helping push the 250 Index to record levels in 2006.
One noticeable difference between the FTSE250 compared to the FTSE100, is that companies here generally have less international exposure. When it comes to the consideration of risk, you can play this one of two ways: some argue that having the majority of profits coming from the UK provides for less risk, while others (including us) favour having fingers in as many regions as possible.
Finally, at the higher end of the risk scale you find smaller companies and AIM quoted shares. These tend to be more volatile and less liquid than their larger cousins, factors that generally lead to wider bid/offer spreads. The AIM market has seen considerable growth over the last 10 years, partly because companies don’t have to comply with the same stringent requirements of the main market.
Often, private investors don’t get a look-in as part of the flotation, having to wait until the shares start trading, so do pick your time and use stop-loss limits – that early flush of success isn’t always carried through.
One of the fastest growing sub-sectors within AIM is small mining and exploration groups, many of which are based abroad but have chosen to list in the UK. Because their prospects include a significant amount of ‘hope’ value, such companies will represent the very highest level of risk. Equally classified as higher-risk, though as a result of different factors, are shares in overseas companies.
Household names like Volvo, Coca Cola and Johnson & Johnson are big names and big companies. The additional risk they bring for investors comes from the fact that the majority of their earnings are from overseas. So you face the added risk of changes in exchange rates.
Over recent months, for example, the fall in the US$ would have had a big impact on the sterling value of dividends from US shares And when the companies you invest in are smaller ones, it’s often harder to find reliable research and analysis, harder to track and compare performance, and harder to follow the news that affects the share price. True, most big UK names also trade globally, but as ‘home market’ companies they are well-researched, much commented upon and regularly feature in the UK business finance pages.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t venture outside these shores – far from it – but you need to do so with your eyes open. That’s why we see overseas shares as being more appropriate for investors as they move up the experience ladder and once they’ve built a balanced portfolio. And it’s also why, in general, we’d advise investing in market trackers and funds before moving into individual overseas shares.

Not all shares of stock are equal. There are several different types of shares out there. When looking to invest, it is necessary that you have the complete picture in view. Before you can make an informed investment decision, you need to know the terms that define shares.

Authorized shares represent the total number of shares of stock that were authorized when the company was created. The number of shares can only be increased through a vote by the shareholders. Although the shares were authorized, that does not mean that they were all issued to the public.

Some companies will retain shares to use later. These are called treasury shares. You may see a company release treasury shares onto the market in order to bring in money for a project, expansion or research.

Restricted shares are company stock used for employee incentives and compensation plans. Restricted stockowners will need the permission of the SEC to sell their shares. After a company first goes public, there is a waiting period in which the insiders’ restricted stock is frozen. No matter how established the company is, all insiders must file with the SEC before they sell their restricted stock.

Float shares are the number of shares that are actually available for trade on the open market. Anyone can purchase these shares. The outstanding shares are all of the shares issued by the company, including the restricted shares and the float shares.

For example, if company authorizes 100 shares. They hold 20 shares as treasury shares. There are 10 restricted shares of the company. The float is 70 (100-20-10= 70). The outstanding share amount is 80 (10+70=80).

When you look at the relationship of treasury shares and restricted shares to the float shares, you see where the controlling interest of the company resides. There are many companies that retain a large percentage of the authorized shares in treasury shares and in restricted shares.

By doing this, they are making sure that they can’t be taken over by another company. They can also issue this stock in the future as a way to raise funds.

If the float of a company is quite small and yet the stock attracts many investors, it can often become volatile due to the imbalance between the supply and the demand. The stock will go up, become overpriced and then fall quickly in many cases.

By watching restricted shareholders, you can get a lot of information about a company. You can visit insider trading sites that let you know the planned or recent sales by insiders and major stockholders. You can often get a feel for the company through watching what they are doing.

By understanding the various types of shares, you will have a better insight to the company itself. All stocks aren’t created equal. Make sure you know where the control lies in a company. It can tell you a lot about where a company is going. By understanding shares, you find that you are prepared to analyze companies.

When you’re comparing shares vs property in an attempt to decide where you’ll invest your hard earned money next, it’s never a case of one being entirely good or entirely bad. Shares and property both have their benefits and downsides. The important thing is to look for good choices in each sector, and to decide which option fits your particular situation. For a while, the shares versus property argument was going in favor of property, as far as most people were concerned. Investing in property was fashionable. With the recent real estate crisis in America property investment is losing its appeal for many. However, that doesn’t mean that investment property isn’t a viable choice. Buying property to rent is still a good option, and there’s plenty of opportunity available in commercial property. Stocks and shares have bounced back and forth recently, and many people are concerned about their future prospects. However, the right choice can mean that, for you, the shares vs. property debate comes up in favor of the stock market. It all depends on your situation – there are good things about both of them. Anyone who argues that one is definitely superior to the other hasn’t done his or her homework. Benefits of Property In general, property wins the shares vs property argument for people interested in stability and long term growth. Property offers good leverage and strong capital gains. Established properties fare better, and it’s important to choose carefully. Look for good locations and opportunities for price appreciation. If you want to be sure of income, think about rental locations as a safe bet. Property investment is something that many find easier to understand than share investment. There’s a certain level of knowledge and sophistication required, but less technical understanding. In terms of shares vs property, property is also more tangible – you’ll be able to see where your money is going. Investing in property can also give you more control over your investment. Property investors have complete control over the investment, where share investors have only the influence of their voting power. In terms of shares vs property, Property also gives you the ability to personally add value if you choose to renovate or develop it. Benefits of Shares When we talk about shares vs. property, shares offer high liquidity and good cash flow prospects. They’re easier to profit on in the short term, if you keep a good eye on shares prices. Income is one of the most certain parts of any investment return. That means you should look for companies you know to be well managed, which have a good profit record if you think shares are the best choice in the shares vs. property debate. In addition to the above, when it comes to shares vs. property, shares are much more divisible. You can sell down portions of your portfolio without selling the whole thing – something that can’t be said about property. The minimum investment is also usually lower. If you can only invest five thousand dollars, that’s not a problem. Transaction costs are lower in the shares vs. property debate, too. The only costs required are brokerage on acquisition and disposal. On the other hand, property will have a number of extra costs on both ends, plus the cost of maintaining it. Direct share ownership actually has no ongoing costs at all.