Managing my finances or investing in stocks are things that I haven’t had the time or guts to delve into. Now that I think about it, now might be a good time for me to explore that idea. It’s been well, years, since I seriously touched a calculator. Yes, no one could not have guessed that I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Management and Economics. When I graduated, I swore to myself that I’d keep away as far as possible from anything that resembled ledger paper. Accounting terrified me as much it does now. That might be one of the reasons why paying the bills is not on my list of favorite activities. I found sites such as Mint.com (US and Canada only) and Wesabe to be useful in that area, since each allows me to track my savings, spendings and investment performance. I create an account, and these sites collect my financial information, letting me keep track of credit cards, home loans and bank and brokerage accounts all in the comfort of a website interface. For Facebook nuts, Wesabe works similarly as a social network where users can share tips and advice on a range of financial issues.
When it comes to tracking investments and financial advice, Social Picks stood out from the pack. One popular feature is the Blog Tracker, a tool that monitors the performance of well-known financial bloggers, Wall Street honchos and analysts based on blog articles and other information. As the name suggests, much of the site is powered by its community, allowing an objective and informal exchange of ideas and advice.
If I wanted to invest in Philippine stocks, the Philippine Stock Exchange website is an excellent starting point for newbie investors like me. The site provides weekly reports on exchange activity, analysis and commentary and spot rates on foreign exchange and index/sectoral averages. It also suggests reputable online brokers to help you start building your portfolio. Reading a book by Ken Fisher or this Fisher Investments article can be of great help too.
My dad’s been an active investor in stocks for more than ten years and saw some success before the financial crisis struck. He has gotten back in the game, but is still kicking himself for not buying those coveted Google stocks when I told him to do so. I guess his stock broker was not doing his job properly. Me, well, I’m just a guy who happens to read a lot of news, and perhaps one day become his father’s financial adviser. 🙂
I am a stock trader for two years now and so far I already gained from it. Try to trade stocks online. Try philstocks.ph