The stock market’s popularity has rapidly grown in the past couple of years. In fact, up until two decades ago, it was considered unthinkable for the average, everyday person to invest in stock. The privilege was reserved solely for employees of brokerages, financial corporations, and other big fish. However, at the start of the 21st century, discount brokerages and online trading platforms completely changed the game, and made it possible for people to invest on one of the numerous stock exchanges in the world.
Today, there are 60 major global stock exchanges in the world. Their size and trading volume varies, and in this article, we would like to take a look at a few of the biggest markets available to traders. Let’s take a look at the biggest stock exchanges by market capitalization in the world today.
What is Market Capitalization?
But, before we get to it, we first want to talk a bit about what market capitalization actually is. For those who may not be into the world of stock exchange, the phrase might sound daunting. However, it could not be simpler to understand. Market capitalization (often abbreviated to market cap) refers to the complete market value of a company’s shares. Market capitalization is just one of the terms you should be familiar with before you start trading.
Often times, online trading platforms like this hfx trading platform will offer tutorials and explanations of terms like market cap, so, if you are a newbie, then using websites like the aforementioned is your best bet for starting out your trading journey. And now, without further ado, let us take a look at a few of the biggest stock exchanges in the world.
New York Stock Exchange
The first, and biggest stock exchange on our list is the New York Stock Exchange. Situated on Wall Street in New York City, there are very few people in the world, whether business owners, people looking to startup, or just the average, everyday Joe, who has not heard of the New York Stock Exchange.
The stock exchange was founded in 1817, over 200 years ago, and has endured through the test of time. The market has seen some of the most famous and infamous events in the world of trading, with the most well-known being the Wall Street Crash, which brought an end to the roaring 20s of the past century.
Today, close to a century later, the NYSE remains one of the biggest stock exchanges in the world, with a market capitalization exceeding tens of trillions of dollars. An interesting thing to note, is that the New York Stock Exchange comprises 40% of the total world stock market value, meaning that it is unlikely that it will deal with any competition in the future.
Tokyo Stock Exchange
The Tokyo Stock Exchange is the second that we are going to be looking at. It was founded in the mid-to-late 1800s, and is the largest Asian stock exchange by market capitalization, as well as the largest market in Japan. The market cap of the Tokyo Stock Exchange exceeds six trillion dollars, and may be rising soon.
There are over 3000 companies which offer stocks on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, with some of the top companies including the famous Japanese vehicle production companies, Honda and Toyota, as well as entertainment conglomerate Sony Corp.
Hong Kong Stock Exchange
Founded in 1891 under the name Association of Stockbrokers of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is the youngest on this list, and also the smallest, with a market cap exceeding four trillion dollars. Despite this, it still remains one of the biggest stock exchanges in the world, taking up the top five spots. Most of the companies that are traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange are based in the city itself, and they number just short of 2000.
Other Big Stock Exchanges
Apart from the aforementioned options, there are quite a few other Stock Exchanges that have attained massive notoriety and popularity. Among them are the London and Shanghai Stock Exchange. These are two of the biggest stock exchanges, which compete for a spot in the top five. Apart from them, there are also the NASDAQ (based in New York) which is the second biggest stock exchange after the NYSE.
Other Trading Options
The stock exchange might be the most popular form of trading, but it isn’t the only one. In the past few years,cryptocurrency has garnered massive popularity, and crypto traders and trading platforms are becoming more and more plentiful. Apart from crypto, forex trading is also gaining quite a bit of popularity. The practice has been around since the 20th century, however, it has only grown in esteem in recent years. These are just a few of the options that traders have available to them in 2022.
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