A lot of people have asked me on whether they should invest in the Philippine stock market. Most of those who asked also wanted to know how to start doing it. I do not know if they are really serious about investing or if they are merely curious about it since it has been given emphasis lately considering its very positive performance.

Investing in the Philippine stock market is not for the faint hearted. As an investor you must have expectations as to how much you are going to earn for a certain vehicle of investment. Such is expectation is measured in terms of how much your money will grow at a certain period of time. (Most usually this is measured in interest per annum) Because the Philippine Stock market is in its all time high for several months now, people think that they should join the band wagon. They do not even understand the basic principles involved nor do they understand how the stock market works. I am not saying that you should be an economist before you should invest in the stock market.

What you should understand is that you must know the basic principles involved first before you can achieve a level of success in investing in the stock market. Fortunes are made on the Stock market. But take note that huge losses are also incurred. Those who just plunge into the stock market without a grasp of the basic principles of investment end up convincing themselves that the stock market is no good at all, does not make them any money and finally quit after some time.

Let us not begin first by discussing the “how tos” in investing in the Philippine stock market. Let us first understand the basic principles of investment so that we might enjoy trading and be successful in the stock market. There are ten principles involved. We will talk about the first principle here. Other principles will follow in the next articles. Visit my blog if you want to see the whole article.

1.) You must realize that the stock market is just another vehicle of investment – There are several investment vehicles where you could place your money. One is not more superior than the other. They have their advantages and disadvantages, but this will not be discussed in depth here.

You must understand that the stock market belongs to an investment category called “Capital Markets.” Capital Markets are divided further into several categories. Here alone, there are several investment vehicles wherein you could place your money. Examples of these investment vehicles aside from the stock market are real estate, pension funds, bonds, insurance, different types of savings and time deposit accounts. It is of vital importance that you know this fact because knowing the different types of investment vehicles under the Capital markets will help you evaluate whether or not you should invest in the Stock Market considering that there are other vehicles of investment.

Bear in mind that each vehicle of investment has their own advantages and drawbacks. The secret here is not to place all of your eggs in one basket. Even if most of my investments are in the Capital Markets, I diversified by placing investments in the stock market, bonds through mutual funds, pension, deposits and insurances.

Want to know more about investment strategies ? Visit the blog of Zigfred Diaz where he blogs about several interesting topics such as investments, money management, business, making money online and Stock market investing

Related posts:

1. Basic investment principles in the stock market – Part 1 of 4
2. Principles of investments in the stock market – Part 2 of 4
3. Basic Investment Principles In The Stock Market – Part 4
4. Basic investment principles in the stock market – Part 3 of 4
5. Basic investment principles in the stock market – Part 4 of 4