The S&P 500, or simply the S&P, is a stock market index that measures the stock performance of 500 large companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. It is one of the most commonly followed equity indices, and many consider it to be one of the best representations of the U.S. stock market. The average annual total return of the index, including dividends, since inception in 1926 has been 9.8%; however, there were several years where the index declined over 30%. The index has posted annual increases 70% of the time.

For a list of the components of the index, see List of S&P 500 companies. The components that have increased their dividends in 25 consecutive years are known as the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats.

The S&P 500 is a capitalization-weighted index and the performance of the 10 largest companies in the index account for 21.8% of the performance of the index.

Funds that track the index have been recommended as investments by Warren Buffett, Burton Malkiel and John C. Bogle for investors with long time horizons.

Although the index includes only companies listed in the United States, companies not originating from the United States might be included in the future. It already includes many multi-national companies; companies in the index derive on average only 71% of their revenue in the United States.

The index is one of the factors in computation of the Conference Board Leading Economic Index, used to forecast the direction of the economy.

The index is associated with many ticker symbols, including: ^GSPC, INX, and $SPX, depending on market or website. The index value is updated every 15 seconds, or 1,559 times per trading day, with price updates disseminated by Reuters.

The S&P 500 is maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices, a joint venture majority-owned by S&P Global and its components are selected by a committee.

22 09, 2024

September 22nd, 2024, Bitcoin – Not yet ready to launch the breakout rally

By |2024-09-22T19:46:06+02:00September 22nd, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Bitcoin – Not yet ready to launch the breakout rally Since the beginning of the year, Bitcoin is up by more than 52%. While prices have been strongly trending higher during the first few months, the Bitcoin rally has stalled [...]

23 08, 2024

August 23rd, 2024, Gold – The rally is likely to continue

By |2024-08-27T15:44:40+02:00August 23rd, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Gold - The rally is likely to continue Since October 6th, 2023, gold has been on a remarkable upward trajectory, consistently breaking through to new all-time highs. While the rally has shown signs of deceleration since mid-April 2024, the bullish [...]

13 08, 2024

August 13th, 2024, Bitcoin – This correction is probably not over yet

By |2024-08-14T13:55:14+02:00August 13th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Bitcoin – This correction is probably not over yet Not surprisingly, Bitcoin has experienced significant market fluctuations over the last few weeks. While Bitcoin spent most of spring with a boring sideways consolidation, volatility has exploded in recent weeks. Hence, [...]

2 08, 2024

August 2nd, 2024, Gold – Only a short-lived pullback after speculative spike

By |2024-08-02T16:55:45+02:00August 2nd, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Gold - Only a short-lived pullback after speculative spike Over the past few days, the gold market has experienced significant volatility and a notable decline as well as a sharp recovery in prices.  Following a gradual decline in price fluctuations [...]

21 06, 2024

June 21st, 2024, Bitcoin – Summer doldrums are approaching

By |2024-06-22T00:42:40+02:00June 21st, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |1 Comment

Bitcoin - Summer doldrums are approaching Bitcoin, the world's leading cryptocurrency, is entering a period historically marked by reduced trading activity and price stagnation, often referred to as the "summer doldrums." This seasonal weakness, typically observed from early June to [...]

16 06, 2024

June 16th, 2024, Gold – Breather or Top Formation

By |2024-06-16T23:21:08+02:00June 16th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Gold – Breather or Top Formation On Whit Monday, May 20th, the price of gold reached a new all-time high of USD 2,450. However, this milestone was immediately followed by a sharp pullback to USD 2,287, from which the gold [...]

28 05, 2024

May 28th, 2024, Gold – Reversal signals are increasing

By |2024-05-29T22:18:54+02:00May 28th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |1 Comment

Gold - Reversal signals are increasing The gold market's meteoric rise over the past seven-and-a-half months has been nothing short of extraordinary. Fueled by heightened geopolitical tensions and robust central bank buying, gold prices smashed through resistance around USD 2,075 [...]

9 05, 2024

May 9th, 2024, Bitcoin – Recovery attempt fails, summer doldrums loom

By |2024-05-09T12:06:56+02:00May 9th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Bitcoin - Recovery attempt fails, summer doldrums loom Review Despite the crypto community eagerly anticipating the Bitcoin halving, the event itself did not lead to the hoped-for massive price surge. Instead, starting from the new all-time high of USD 73,793, [...]

29 04, 2024

April 29th, 2024, Gold – Consolidation triangle rather suggests continuation of the rally

By |2024-04-29T21:38:45+02:00April 29th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Gold - Consolidation triangle rather suggests continuation of the rally Gold prices have taken a dip as hopes for a rate cut diminish following the reduction of broader conflict risks in the Middle East. As the attention is now turning [...]

24 03, 2024

March 24th, 2024, Bitcoin – Potential correction despite ETFs and Halving

By |2024-03-24T14:44:19+01:00March 24th, 2024|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Bitcoin - Potential correction despite ETFs and Halving The stock market rally still demonstrates a lot of momentum, with the S&P 500 showing a year-to-date return of 7.11%, Furthermore, the market's focus on the tech sector, with AI-related companies like [...]

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