#index-funds

#index-funds

1. Start simple - you don't need to be a trader "You can make it extremely complicated if you're a trader, but you don't have to be," Ellard-King said. Rather than spending hours glued to screens and options, he recommended mainly investing your money in index funds that track the broader market. "Just let the smartest companies in the world do their thing," he said.

As a barometer of US industrial and corporate economic health, the S&P 500 Index has few equals. Over the past decade, less than 15% of professional large-cap fund managers have been able to surpass the performance of the S&P 500. In fact, no less an investing authority than Warren Buffett cited in the 2013 Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letter: " The goal of the non-professional should not be to pick winners...instead, seek to own a cross-section of businesses that in aggregate are bound to do well. An S&P 500 index fund will achieve this goal."

The total stock market index fund aims to match the performance of the entire stock market, offering diversification beyond just the largest companies.

Investing in an international index budget provides essential market exposure, enabling investors to capitalize on diverse economic opportunities. Careful selection is crucial as not all funds perform equally.