European Monetary System - EMS

What Does it Mean?
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A 1979 arrangement between several European countries which links their currencies in an attempt to stabilize the exchange rate. This system was succeeded by the European Monetary Union (EMU), an institution of the European Union (EU), which established a common currency called the euro.

Investopedia Says:
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The European Monetary System originated in an attempt to stabilize inflation and stop large exchange-rate fluctuations between European countries. Then, in June 1998, the European Central Bank was established and, in January 1999, a unified currency, the euro, was born and came to be used by most EU member countries.

W-Shaped Recovery

What Does it Mean?
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An economic cycle of recession and recovery that resembles a "W" in charting. A W-shaped recovery represents the shape of the chart of certain economic measures such as employment, GDP, industrial output, etc. A W-shaped recovery involves a sharp decline in these metrics followed by a sharp rise back to the previous peak, followed again by a sharp decline and ending with another sharp rise. The middle section of the W can represent a significant bear market rally or a recovery that was stifled by an additional economic crisis.

Investopedia Says:
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A W-shaped recovery generally characterizes a period of extreme volatility compared to other types of recoveries. There are countless other shapes a recession and recovery chart could take, including L-shaped, V-shaped, U-shaped and J-shaped. Each shape represents the general shape of the chart of economic metrics that gauge economic health.

Bull Bond

What Does it Mean?
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A bond that is likely to increase in value in a bull market, when interest rates are declining. Most bonds tend to increase in value when interest rates decline, but bull bonds refer to types of bonds that do especially well in this environment.

Investopedia Says:
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A common example of a bull bond is the principal only (PO) strip mortgage-backed security. Whereas most bonds will increase in value in a declining rate market, mortgage-backed securities perform especially well. POs are mortgage securities created by separating principal payments from interest payments collected in a pool of mortgage securities. The principal payments are then combined to form a mortgage pool. PO mortgage securities do well in a falling rate market because mortgage holders refinance their loans at lower interest rates. Investors are repaid their original investment more quickly, increasing the rate of return for the mortgage-backed security.

Golden coffins

What Does it Mean?
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A lucrative death-benefit policy given to top executives. A golden coffin is a death-benefit package awarded to the heirs of high ranking executives who die while still employed with a company. Benefits awarded can include unearned salary, accelerated stock options and insurance proceeds.

Investopedia Says:
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Golden coffins have come under fire as an inappropriate and uneccesary faction of executive compensation. Proponents of golden coffins however claim that such death benefit packages are rarely paid out and act as inexpensive way to keep top executives and discourage unwanted takeover attempts.

Currency Carry Trade

What Does it Mean?
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A strategy in which an investor sells a certain currency with a relatively low interest rate and uses the funds to purchase a different currency yielding a higher interest rate. A trader using this strategy attempts to capture the difference between the rates, which can often be substantial, depending on the amount of leverage used.

Investopedia Says:
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Here's an example of a "yen carry trade": a trader borrows 1,000 Japanese yen from a Japanese bank, converts the funds into U.S. dollars and buys a bond for the equivalent amount. Let's assume that the bond pays 4.5% and the Japanese interest rate is set at 0%. The trader stands to make a profit of 4.5% as long as the exchange rate between the countries does not change. Many professional traders use this trade because the gains can become very large when leverage is taken into consideration. If the trader in our example uses a common leverage factor of 10:1, then she can stand to make a profit of 45%.

The big risk in a carry trade is the uncertainty of exchange rates. Using the example above, if the U.S. dollar were to fall in value relative to the Japanese yen, then the trader would run the risk of losing money. Also, these transactions are generally done with a lot of leverage, so a small movement in exchange rates can result in huge losses unless the position is hedged appropriately.

Stop- Loss Order

What Does it Mean?
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An order placed with a broker to sell a security when it reaches a certain price. A stop-loss order is designed to limit an investor's loss on a security position.

Also known as a "stop order" or "stop-market order".

Investopedia Says:
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Setting a stop-loss order for 10% below the price you paid for the stock will limit your loss to 10%. This strategy allows investors to determine their loss limit in advance, preventing emotional decision-making.

It's also a great idea to use a stop order before you leave for holidays or enter a situation in which you will be unable to watch your stocks for an extended period of time.

Currency Risk

What Does it Mean?
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A form of risk that arises from the change in price of one currency against another. Whenever investors or companies have assets or business operations across national borders, they face currency risk if their positions are not hedged.

Investopedia Says:
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For example, if you are a U.S. investor and you have stocks in Canada, the return that you will realize is affected by both the change in the price of the stocks and the change in the value of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar. So, if you realize a 15% return in your Canadian stocks but the Canadian dollar depreciates 15% against the U.S. dollar, this will amount to no gain at all.

Academic studies of currency risk suggest - although without absolute certainty - that investors bearing currency risk are not compensated with higher potential returns, meaning it is essentially a needless risk to bear.