The Wall Street Journal guide to understanding money & investing

Picture a market that is open 24 hours a day, where you can buy ownership in the largest companies in the world, lend money to the government for 30 days or 30 years, or gamble on the future price of raw materials you may never see or use.

Welcome to the intriguing and often baffling world of money and investing, a world that seems remote from our daily lives yet directly affects our pocketbooks—how far our dollar goes in the supermarket, how much we earn on our investments, and what it will cost to buy or refinance our homes.

Building on the style we developed for The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Personal Finance, we've written this primer in plain, everyday English to unravel the mysteries of the financial markets—the language, the players, the strategies, and above all, the risks and rewards of investments, as well as their ups and downs.

Through clear, colorful graphics we take you behind the scenes to show how the markets works, how money gains and loses value, the meaning of financial trends and indicators, and the things you need to know when making your own investments and measuring their performance.

In preparing the guide, we are deeply indebted to The Wall Street Journal, and especially Douglas Sease,for their unstinting editorial support, the use of their financial tables and charts, and the vast information resources and financial expertise made available to us.

KENNETH M. MORRIS & ALAN M. SIEGEL