ABC of Stock Market (India)

Inflation is the rise in prices and the decline in value. Compute real returns as nominal returns minus inflation, and see how stocks beat inflation.

Explore the relationship between risk and return, defining risk as the gap between expected and actual earnings and return as profits from investments, including mutual funds, stocks, and bank deposits.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India regulates the securities market, protects investors, and promotes development through rules and investor awareness. It attracts foreign investment and provides a complaints platform.

Explore the capital market, where investors trade financial securities such as equity and debentures. Learn how the stock market and stock exchange differ and enable buying and selling.

Explore India's stock exchanges, the Bombay Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange, and the Multi Commodity Exchange, and learn about equity and currency derivatives and SEBI regulation.

Explore equity and debt as stock market products that raise capital, where equity offers ownership, voting rights, dividends and capital appreciation, while debt provides fixed interest without ownership.

Understand the primary market and secondary market by comparing IPOs to fresh vegetables, showing first-hand share access at IPOs and trading among investors on the stock exchange.

Discover how Sensex and Nifty indices use the average of selected BSE and NSE companies to indicate market health.

Explain dividend and interest: dividends go to equity holders and are not compulsory, while interest to debt holders is compulsory, reflecting return on capital.

Market capitalization measures a company's value in the market, classifying it as large cap, mid-cap, or small cap by thresholds of over 20000 crores, 5000–20000 crores, and under 5000 crores.

Learn the difference between bullish and bearish markets, what drives positive and negative stock outlooks, and how bull and bear trends impact stock price movements.

Explore how equity raises capital in exchange for ownership, and how ownership is divided into shares, where a stake like one percent represents a proportion of the whole.

Learn how face value, book value, market value, and intrinsic value differ, and how listing, demand, and supply dynamics shape share prices.

Explain how stock splits change face value and price while preserving value and increasing volume, and how bonus issues provide more shares without changing face value.

Understand how dividends—return of capital—are announced at the annual general meeting, and navigate the dividend timeline from declaration to ex-dividend and record dates, cum dividend, and T+2 settlement.

Investors participate by buying shares issued to the public and trading with brokers. Clearing houses transfer shares, and depository participants maintain dematerialized accounts linked to trading.

Compare investors who buy and hold for long-term growth using fundamental analysis of balance sheets with traders who seek quick profits through technical analysis of price movements.

Explore stock market timings, including pre-opening, normal market hours, US post, closing sessions, and aftermarket orders, with explanations of opening gaps, opening prices, and prior close comparisons.

Open a bank account, a trading account, and a demat account with a broker to start investing; learn about money flow, order execution, and essential charges.

Explore key order types in the Indian stock market, including market orders, limit orders, stop-loss orders, intraday trading, and IOC and end-of-day order options.

Learn practical stock market investing using moneycontrol.com to read prices, Sensex and Nifty, and understand delivery versus intraday trading, market depth, and key valuation metrics.