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stock market index

stock market index

1 4.1
A number that shows how prices of selected stocks change over time
  • noun
  • /stɑk ˈmɑrkɪt ˈɪndɛks/
  • Specialized
translation icon : índice bursátil
  • A rise in the stock market index can signal increased investor confidence.
  • a major stock market index
  • a stock market index fund
  • the stock market index doubled

There are two main uses for a stock market index, benchmarking and investment.

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Examples

  • The outage, which left brokers unable to process orders, came a day after the main Italian stock market index closed down 3.6 percent, making it the worst performing European market on Monday.

    Blog text (6)
  • In 2005, the stock market index fell 26 percent.

    Academic text (2007)
  • The stock market index doubled in the year since July 1989, better than any other market in the world.

    Academic text (1990)
  • There are two main uses for a stock market index, benchmarking and investment.

  • This is the most important stock market index to follow because it’s the leader.

    Blog text (22)
  • During the past two years, the Shanghai stock-market index has risen from 1,000 to 6,000.

    Academic text (2008)
  • At the same time, the stock market indices have gained less during Republican administrations and more during Democratic administrations.

    Blog text (12)
  • Now look at the stock market index; it has entered the rebound cycle, characterized by individual stocks in the forefront, so this time investors must follow to operate before the introduction of the idea.

    Blog text (5)
  • The stock market index indicates how the overall market is performing by tracking the prices of selected stocks.

  • Investors often look at the stock market index to gauge the health of the economy.

Synonyms

Dow Jones
vsstock market index
224 4.2

A number showing the average price of stocks in 30 large US companies

is the wider class of indicators that includes such specific averages
Dow Jones Industrial Average
vsstock market index
41 3.9

A number showing how the stock prices of 30 large US companies are doing

is a broader category covering many such specific benchmark measures
stock index
vsstock market index
  • Specialized
6 3.4

A number that shows how a group of stocks is doing

is the general term used for this type of indicator
Standard and Poor's Index
vsstock market index
  • Specialized
5.1

A number that shows how a group of stocks is doing in the market

is a general indicator that can also describe narrower or broader groups

How Broad

stock market index
  • Specialized
1 4.1
stock index
  • Specialized
6 3.4
subindex
6.5

Surface Forms

Morphology

stock + market + index

The meaning is directly compositional: an 'index' is a numeric indicator and 'stock market' refers to the market for stocks, so 'stock market index' straightforwardly denotes an indicator for the stock market. This noun-noun compounding is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the three words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The noun stock market index is like a scoreboard for stocks: it takes many company stock prices from the market and turns them into one number, the index. So, it tells investors 'how the market is doing'.