Investment or investing is a term with several closely-related meanings in finance and economics, related to saving or deferring consumption. An asset is usually purchased, or equivalently a deposit is made in a bank, in hopes of getting a future return or interest from it. Literally, the word means the "action of putting something in to somewhere else" (perhaps originally related to a person's garment or 'vestment').

Types of investment

---

The major difference in the use of the term investment in economics and finance is that economists are usually referring to a real investment - such as a machine or a house - but financial economists usually refer to a financial asset - money that is put into a bank or the market - which may then be used to buy a real asset.

Economics

More on [ Investment ]

Forbes.com: Most popular stories

Where U.S. Homes Are Most Overpriced
Francesca LevyProperties in these cities stay on the market longest, and sell for less than asking price.
The World's Billionaires
Edited by Luisa Kroll, Matthew Miller and Tatiana SerafinThe Forbes annual Billionaires List: a grouping of the richest people in the world and how they became wealthy. Including Warren Buffett, and Bill Gates.
Why Men Don't Promote Women More
Shaun ReinBecause women aren't pushy enough.

Latest financial news - CNNMoney.com

Wells Fargo stock offering tops $12 billion
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:53:06 -0500
Wells Fargo said it raised more than $12 billion in a stock sale Tuesday as part of a plan to repay $25 billion in government aid.
House to vote on $167 billion in jobs measures
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 17:52:55 -0500
The House plans to vote Wednesday on measures totaling about $167 billion that would extend the safety net for the unemployed and spur job creation.
Raising the debt limit by a 'little'
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:38:38 -0500
Last week, there was talk on Capitol Hill of raising the legal limit on how much debt the U.S. Treasury could have on the books by as much as $1.9 trillion. This week, the tune has changed considerably.

Standard Newswire: Financial

GOP Leaders Urge President Obama to Take Swift Action on Trade Pacts to Help Create American Jobs
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:52:54 -0700
Leaders Pledge Support in Helping Approve Pending Trade Agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea Contact: Michael Steel, Antonia Ferrier, Kevin Smith, 202-225-4000 WASHINGTON, Dec. 11 /Standard Newswire/ -- Following up on a discussion at the White House Wednesday on the importance of trade to creating more American jobs, House GOP leaders sent a letter to President Obama urging swift action on pending trade agreements to Colombia, Panama and South Korea to help create jobs and Source: Republican Leader Press Office
Boehner: Shut Down TARP by Year's End
Wed, 09 Dec 2009 14:25:25 -0700
GOP Leader: "It's time to get the government out of the bailout business and stop the reckless spending here in Washington" Contact: Michael Steel, Antonia Ferrier, Kevin Smith, 202-225-4000 WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 /Standard Newswire/ -- House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) issued the following statement after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced he would extend the federal financial bailout program -- the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP)  -- until n Source: Republican Leader Press Office
Don't Worry, Be Angry: UC Berkeley Marketing Study Shows Angry Negotiators Walk out With a Better Deal
Mon, 07 Dec 2009 07:24:18 -0700
Contact: Pamela Tom, Haas School Media Relations, 510-642-2734, ptom@haas.berkeley.edu   BERKELEY, Calif., Dec. 7 /Standard Newswire/ -- Professor Teck-Hua Ho's wife loved a particular painting and wanted to buy it. Ho advised her not to appear excited - to disguise her emotions - in front of the salesperson. After an hour or so, Ho walked out of the store with the $380 painting - for only $120. Negotiation, Ho knows, is an art, too. In new research conducted with Assistant Professor Edu Source: CCN

SmartMoney.com

Skeptical That Growth Will Take Root
letters@smartmoney.com (Lawrence C. Strauss) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
Douglas A. Kass, of Seabreeze Partners, discusses rising populism.
Where to Invest 2010 (Magazine Cover)
letters@smartmoney.com (Reshma Kapadia,Russell Pearlman) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
The economy will play a bigger role than usual in dictating which stocks will do well in 2010.
Where to Invest 2010: Plodding Along (Magazine Cover)
letters@smartmoney.com (Reshma Kapadia,Russell Pearlman) Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
A record-setting rally has investors comingback to stocks, but is it too late?

Fool.co.uk - Headlines

What Next For ETFs?
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0000
ETFs could face a number of hurdles in the coming year.
BA's Double Whammy
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0000
BA is facing a record pension deficit and strike action by cabin crew.

The Financial Page

James Surowiecki: Crisis in the Tiger Woods business.
James Surowiecki Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:00:00 -0000
A recent issue of Forbes features a full-page ad for the consulting firm Accenture with Tiger Woods striding through tall grass. The tagline reads, “The road to high performance isn’t always paved.” To which the obvious rejoinder these days is “Sometimes it runs straight . . .
James Surowiecki: Why the Chinese don’t spend.
James Surowiecki Mon, 30 Nov 2009 05:00:00 -0000
8220;China makes, the world takes.” For decades, that has been the motto of the Chinese economy, which is built on providing an endless supply of goods for the rest of the world to buy. But these days there’s a palpable sense that this needs to change . . .
James Surowiecki: How the tax code encourages debt.
James Surowiecki Mon, 16 Nov 2009 05:00:00 -0000
John Kenneth Galbraith wrote that all financial crises are the result of “debt that, in one fashion or another, has become dangerously out of scale.” The recent financial crisis was no exception, with everyone—homeowners, private-equity investors, our biggest banks—taking on enormous amounts of . . .

Subscribe to Investing RSS feed