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Market & Trade Services |
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The United States plays a role of significant importance in leading the dynamics of global finance. It has the most developed capital market with numerous listed companies. Moreover, it offers a diverse array of investment choices, ranging from blue chips to small-cap stocks. Such variety in the U.S. market enables investors to find their desired investments.
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| 【The Three Main Stock Exchanges】 |
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE): NYSE is the oldest stock exchange of great renown in the U.S.., offering more than 3,600 listed securities, including the time-honoured Fortune 500 such as IBM, Boeing (BA), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), etc. Unlike the auto-matching system in the Hong Kong market, the mode adopted by NYSE allows for price bargaining. Brokers would search for sellers and/or buyers in the market in accordance with their clients’ instructions, then conduct price bargaining on their clients’ behalf before execution of the relevant deals.
New York Stock Exchange Website：http://www.nyse.com
Criteria for getting listed with NYSE: at least have 1, 100, 000 shares tradable in the market, the market value of such shares must worth at least 18, 000, 000 U.S. dollars. There must be at least 2, 000 shareholders, each shareholder holding at least 100 shares. Profits before taxation for the last financial year must not be lower than 2, 500, 000 U.S. dollars. Within the last 6 months, the average monthly trading volume must not be less than 100, 000 shares.
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The NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ): NASDAQ is the shorthand for The National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations. NASDAQ is the first electronic stock market in the globe. The NASDAQ Capital Market and the NASDAQ Global Market are part of the NASDAQ stock market, offering more than 5,000 shares for trading, the prices of which are all matched electronically. Securities being traded in the NASDAQ Stock Market are predominantly those of high–tech companies, including Microsoft (MSFT), Cisco (CSCO), Yahoo (YHOO), Apple Computer (AAPL), etc. Everyday more than half of the total trading volume in the U.S. takes place in the NASDAQ Stock Market.
The NASDAQ Stock Market Website：http://www.nasdaq.com
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American Stock Exchange (AMEX): the trading venue and the mode of trading adopted in AMEX are same as those in NYSE with the difference that the companies listed with AMEX are medium corporations of a smaller scale. Therefore, the price, trading volume and liquidity of the securities being traded in AMEX tend to be lower. However, AMEX was once a place for the growth of blue chips which now prove to be profitable investments. Prior to the formation of the NASDAQ Stock Market, some companies which are now of great renown were listed with AMEX due to their inability to qualify for listing on the NYSE. Companies such as Exxon (XOM) and General Motors (GM) were once listed with AMEX, they developed into large corporations and eventually became listed with NYSE. In 1998, the Exchange was acquired by the NASDAQ Stock Market. However, these two exchanges at present operate independently.
American Stock Exchange website：http://www.amex.com
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| 【The Three Indices】 |
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Everyday over 10, 000 stocks are traded at different stock exchanges in the U.S. Until now, there is no single index that can be employed to calculate the rise and fall of all securities. If we hear any news regarding the rise or fall of any securities in the U.S. market, it is necessary to have knowledge of the type of index in question and the securities constituting such index to avoid forming any misconceived opinion about the market.
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1. Dow Jones Industries Average (DJIA): DJIA is the most long-established index in the world. When we hear news of any rise or fall in the U.S. market, it is referring to the rise and fall of the DJIA. DJIA is made up of 30 blue chips being traded in the NYSE. It is considered to be representative as the 30 blue chips in question are well known and have a track of excellent performance in the market.
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2. Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQ) is similar to the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index in the sense that it is a composite index, made up of listed securities of companies in the high-tech, computer components, internet and telecommunication sectors. NASDAQ may therefore be considered as an important indicator for the performance of the technology related sector locally as well as in the globe. The constituent stock of NASDAQ tends to be changeable. At present, it has more than 5, 000 types of constituent stock.
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3. S&P 500: S&P 500 is made up of 500 listed companies representative of all sectors chosen by the reputable Standard & Poor’s. These 500 listed companies occupy the top 500 places in terms of the highest market value in the U.S. This index is therefore an indicator of the best 500 listed companies in the U.S in terms of market performance. It may also be taken into account by analysts when predicting the performance of the U.S. market. Comparing to DJIA and NASDAQ, S&P 500 as an index is of a more representative nature.
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| 【Transaction information】 |
Transaction Time (US local time)
The transaction date of New York Stock Exchange(NYSE)、American Stock Exchange(AMEX)& The NASDAQ Stock Market(Nasdaq) is on Monday to Friday：
Summer Time: 8:30 AM – 3:00 PM
Hong Kong Time: 9:30 PM – 4:00 AM
Winter Time: 9:30 AM- 4:00 PM
Hong Kong Time: 10:30 PM – 5:00 AM
Remark: Summer Time is from the second Sunday of March to the first Sunday of November.
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Time (Hong Kong Time) |
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21:30 to 04:00 (Summer Time)
22:30 to 05:00 (Winter Time) |
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04:00 to 07:00 (Summer Time)
05:00 to 08:00 (Winter Time) |
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07:00 to 21:30 (Summer Time)
08:00 to 22:30 (Winter Time) |
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Remark: Internet Trading System service time (Hong Kong Time) is:
20:30-04:00(Summer Time)
20:30-05:00(Winter Time)
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Stock Code
US stock code is in English initial. E.g. Apple Inc. is “AAPL. Yahoo! Inc. is “YHOO”.
Lot size
US stocks have no board lot size. You can trade a minimum of 1 share per order.
Limitation on price fluctuation
US stock market has no limitation on price fluctuation.
Tax
Non U.S. residents are not legally obliged to pay tax for profits made from investing in securities by the provision of an IRS Form W-8BEN certifying their residence and nationality. Investors when selling securities are obliged to pay a fee known as SEC FEE. This fee is subject to adjustment of the local authority in the U.S.
Dividend
Declaration Date: this is determined by the board of directors. Ex-Dividend Date: shareholders who purchase securities on the date of the ex-dividend date or afterwards are not entitled to dividends. Record Date: if shareholders wish to be able to receive dividends, his/her name must be submitted to the company for registration prior to the record date. Apart from this, shareholders must also purchase the shares on the date of or prior to the date of registration for receiving dividends set by the board of directors. Payment date: the date when dividends are formally being released to shareholders.
Division of Securities
Actions to divide securities may be taken where the price of the securities of a company is too high. This would reduce the nominal value of such shares and increase its number. When the price of the securities becomes cheaper, it may attract investors who cannot afford to invest in securities of relatively higher nominal value or those who wish to purchase securities at a relatively low price for investment purposes.
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| 【Settlement】 |
Settlement currency
US stock settlement currency is USD. You should have sufficient USD in your account on or before settlement day.
Settlement day
Settlement day is on the 3rd working day after transaction day(US transaction day), i.e. T+3
Below is US public holiday table:
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Public holiday table |
New Year’s Day |
Martin Luther King Jr. |
President’s Day |
Good Friday |
Memorial Day |
Independent Day |
Labour Day |
Columbus Day |
Veteran's Day |
Thanksgiving Day |
Christmas Day |
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01-01-2010 |
18-01-2010 |
15-02-2010 |
02-04-2010 |
31-05-2010 |
05-07-2010 |
06-09-2010 |
11-10-2010 |
11-11-2010 |
25-11-2010 |
24-12-2010 |
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US market related information websites
CNBC http://www.cnbc.com
CNNMoney.com http://money.cnn.com
YAHOO!FINANCE http://finance.yahoo.com
Quote123 http://www.quote123.com
CnYES http://www.cnyes.com
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Should you have any queries about our US Stock services, please contact your usual Account Executive or our Customer Services hotline (852)2523-6685. We will sincerely be at your service.
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Product & Market Research
