Central Banks

 
  Federal Reserve (FED) 0.00%-0.25% Oct 30, 2013

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 The Federal  Reserve  System is  the central  banking  system of  the  United  States . It  was  created in  1913 by  the  enactment  of  the  Federal Reserve Act , largely as a response to a series of financial  panics  or bank runs , particularly a severe panic in 1907. Over time,
 the  roles  and responsibilities of the Federal Reserve System have
 expanded and  its structure has evolved.

 Chairman: Ben S. Bernanke

 Current Voting Members: William C. Dudley, James  Bullard ,  Elizabeth
 A. Duke, Charles L. Evans, Esther L. George, Jerome H. Powell, Sarah  Bloom  Raskin, Eric  S. Rosengren , Jeremy C . Stein, Daniel K. Tarullo,  Janet L. Yellen
 

European Central Bank 0.50% Nov 07, 2013

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 The European Central Bank(ECB) is one of the world's most important  central banks,responsible for monetary policy covering the 16 member  States of the Eurozone . It was  established  by  the European  Union  (EU) in 1998 with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.

 President: Mario Draghi

 
 

Bank of England 0.50% Nov 07, 2013

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 The Bank of England is , despite  its  name , the central  bank of the  whole  of  the United  Kingdom  and  is the  model  on  which  most
 modern ,large central banks have been based .It was established in  1694 to act as the  English  Government's banker , and to this day it
 still acts as the banker for the UK Government.

 Chairman: Mark Carney  
 

Swiss National Bank 0.00% Dec 12, 2013

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 The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is the central bank of Switzerland . It 
 is responsible for Swiss  monetary policy and for  issuing  Swiss franc  banknotes.The SNB is an Aktiengesellschaft under special regulations.  About 55% of its shares are owned by public institutions like cantons  and cantonal banks. The  remaining  shares  are traded on the stock  market. They are mostly owned by private individuals.

 Chairman: Thomas Jordan
 

Reserve Bank of Australia 2.50% Nov 05, 2013

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 The Reserve Bank of  Australia came into being on 14 January 1960
 as Australia's central bank and banknote  issuing authority,when the  Reserve Bank Act  195 9 removed the central banking functions from  the Commonwealth  Bank to it . The Bank  has  the  responsibility  of
 providing  services to the  Government of Australia , which the profits
 of the Bank are transferred back to, in addition to also providing  services to other central banks and official institutions.

 Chairman: Glenn Stevens
 

Bank of Canada 1.00% Dec 04, 2013

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 The Bank of Canada (in French: Banque du Canada) is Canada's 
 central bank. It was created by the Bank of Canada Act of 1934, to  "promote the economic and financial well-being of Canada." It is the 
  sole issuer of banknotes in Canada, and the central bank for the  Canadian dollar. The bank's headquarters are located in the Bank of
 Canada Building at the corner of Wellington and Bank Streets in  downtown Ottawa.

 Chairman: Stephen S. Poloz

 

 Current Voting Members:Stephen S. Poloz,Tiff Macklem,William Black,  Phyllis Clark, Philip Deck, Douglas Emsley, Jock Finlayson, Brian  Henley, Daniel Johnson, Claire M. C. Kennedy, Derek D. Key, David  Laidley, Leo Ledohowski, Richard McGaw

 

Where You Can Get Free Stock Market Quote

A stock market quote is basically a chart that tells you everything you need to know about a stock’s price before you buy a share. Stock quotes are updated constantly as market movements and thousands of buying and selling traders shift the value of the stock. Before you purchase your first stock, you’ll need to be able to read a quote.

Understanding the different parts of a stock quote and knowing where to go for reliable pricing information can mean the difference between a profitable trade and a missed opportunity. Luckily, there are a number of reliable sources for stock market quotes online that offer real-time data you can access for free. Bookmark one of these sites for free quotes to enhance your trading success.

First, know tow to read a stock quote

To read a stock quote, you’ll need to understand what the various numbers mean. Though this may seem like an overwhelming task at first, the truth is that most of the information you’ll see on your quotes aren’t immediately crucial when buying or selling. The most important numbers you’ll need to understand are the following:

Ask

The most important number for stock buyers is the ask price. The ask is the lowest price at which a seller is willing to sell a single share of the stock to you. When you are placing a market order, your broker will automatically get the most “bang for your buck” by buying at the ask, or the lowest-selling trader.

Ask prices frequently move throughout the trading day—if more sellers are looking to get rid of their stock, the ask price will go down. If more buyers are looking to get their hands on the stock than there are traders willing to sell, you can expect the ask price to rise.

Bid

The bid price is the highest price that a buyer is willing to pay for a single share of stock. If you are looking to sell your stocks, the bid price will be more important to you than the ask. Just like the ask price, you can expect the bid price of every stock to fluctuate throughout the day.

Last price

The last price is the most recent price in which the stock has been traded. This is not the price that you will pay if you’re looking to buy—the ask price is the current price.

Volume

The volume is the number of shares of a given stock that have traded hands that day. The higher the volume, the more liquid a stock is; a highly liquid stock can be bought and sold easily and will show a high daily volume

Dividends

The dividend is the amount of money that a company will pay to shareholders on a regular basis, typically either annually or semi-annually. The dividend-price is listed per share. For example, if a stock quote lists that it is paying $1 in dividends and you purchase 100 shares of stock, you can expect to see a $100 return on your investment annually. Companies are not required by law to pay out dividends—so if this space is blank, it means that the company is currently not offering dividends.

Beta

A beta is a statistical measurement of a stock’s movement when compared to the market’s overall movement. A stock that has a beta of 1 or greater typically means that the stock moves in the direction of the market more rapidly—whether the market is moving in a positive direction or a negative one.

A beta that’s between 0 and 1 means that the stock moves more slowly than the market, and a negative beta means that the stock is moving in the opposite direction as the market.

Red flags for free stock quots

There are plenty of sites that offer free stock quotes, but how can you tell if a site is legitimate? Three red flags include:

  • Laggy data. The price of a stock can change at a moment’s notice. The most reliable stock quote providers aim to update their data in real-time to provide the most accurate information available. Beware of sites that lag on their updates—a delay of even just a few minutes can result in overpaying or unreliable data.
  • A website with a bias. The most reliable quotes are those that come from unbiased sources. Beware of websites that have corporate sponsorships, as they may have an incentive to delay their quote data to suit the best interests of their advertisers.
  • Desktop-only compatibility. If you use a mobile app from trading, you’ll also want to keep a mobile-compatible quote source on-hand for on-the-go trading. Test out a website’s compatibility on your phone before you bookmark it—sites that lag, reload multiple times, or have not formatted their website to be viewable on a mobile browser will be of little use to you if you frequently trade using an app.

The best sources for free online stock quotes

 

1. NASDAQ

Nasdaq is the website associated with the world’s second largest stock market exchange on the world, the NASDAQ. NASDAQ.com contains free stock quotes for almost all publicly-traded corporations in the United States, and the website updates its data in real-time.

NASDAQ.com is also a comprehensive website for stock market news and offers a section of company news and announcements for each of the stocks listed. NASDAQ’s mobile website is also well-designed and responsive, updating charts in real time without reloading or crashing, making it a reliable source of information for mobile traders.

 

2. FreeRealTime.com

As its name suggests,FreeRealTime is a free online source for instantaneous stock market quotes. FreeRealTime.com is useful for much more than just quotes—the site also offers an unbiased and comprehensive review of both the domestic and international market on a daily basis.

The website is constantly updated with the latest news, and one of its most unique offerings is its “morning briefs,” which give a distilled picture of the day’s top trending stocks, stocks that have made unusual movements since the close of the market the night before and overnight changes in price that traders need to know about. Traders who have already opened a stock portfolio can take advantage of the site’s new portfolio tracker that serves instant quotes and market news throughout the days associated with the stocks held in the trader’s portfolio.

Just create a free account, add stocks you have in your profile, and FreeRealTime.com will compile data on your unique portfolio.