Investment Fundamentals

Author: Zhao Xijun
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2003-01-01
Features: This book is a classic introductory textbook written for beginners in investment studies by renowned American economist William F. Sharpe and others. It comprehensively and systematically introduces fundamental knowledge of modern investment theory, portfolio management methods, derivative financial instruments, financial markets, and the practical applications of financial instruments. It elaborates on the framework and analytical methods of modern investment theory. This book reduces the mathematical content of "Investment," making the language more concise and easy to understand, while still retaining the richness and completeness of the content. It highlights practical operations, adds international content, and features a relatively independent chapter structure for ease of teaching. We have organized this book with the goal of providing beginners in investment studies with the basic concepts of modern investment theory. We intend to offer in-depth discussions on various aspects of investment studies in this book, but we adhere to the following three principles:
1. Maintain practical and relevant content closely tied to the subject.
2. Ensure the content is easy to understand.
3. Make each chapter self-contained and independent to facilitate teacher use.
First, this book introduces the fundamental financial instruments useful to investors and their specific forms of operation in the market. We avoid discussing topics unrelated to the subject. Second, we aim for this book to be accessible to students unfamiliar with investment studies. Therefore, we use clear and concise language, minimize the use of mathematical symbols, and supplement explanations with abundant and detailed examples. Finally, although we believe the textbook is logically structured, some instructors may want to alter the teaching order or skip certain chapters entirely. Therefore, the chapters are arranged to be independent for ease of teacher use. This book is the 3rd edition. Any textbook author can appreciate that work is always being refined. After each new edition is published, we receive many valuable suggestions from teachers, readers, and critics, which help improve the book. To make this book more practical, accessible, and flexible, we have made substantial revisions to the 3rd edition. Especially in the following aspects, the 3rd edition differs from the 2nd edition:
- New material additions: Provide new material to familiarize students with new developments in investment studies, revise some charts, and include discussions of recent important academic research.
- Practical application modifications: Update or replace some explanations of practical applications to help students understand how theory is applied in real life.
- Focus adjustments: Primarily focus on key concepts, reducing descriptions of outdated or less important concepts.
- Statistical knowledge addition: A solid foundation in statistics is crucial for better understanding investment studies. Therefore, this book adds a review section on statistical knowledge in Chapter 7.
- Expanded and refined content on efficient markets: The concept of efficient markets is vital in modern investment theory. Our explanation of this topic differs from other textbooks. Instead of lengthy, repetitive emphasis, we provide a concise summary in Chapter 4 and review and elaborate on it in relevant chapters.
- International content addition: The rapid development of international investment requires students to quickly become familiar with related knowledge. Chapter 26 directly discusses this topic, and the discussion of international securities, securities markets, research, and data is expanded throughout the book.