| uestion you may say! Of course you buy stocks via | | | | you don’t only want to buy say 10 or 20 |
| your broker or online using your brokerage account. | | | | stocks, but maybe 500 or even 1000, this volume will |
| But
| | | | be difficult to get and may take several hours or |
| It’s not necessarily that easy if you want to | | | | even days. |
| buy foreign stocks which you shouldn’t really | | | | What can also happen then is, that your order will |
| underestimate nor neglect. There’s a whole | | | | automatically be split up into several orders until the |
| batch of foreign stocks out there that make great | | | | entire volume ordered is purchased. This is what |
| investments but that are not available in your | | | | happened to one of my orders a few years ago. |
| country, or only with difficulty. | | | | And every order is charged with a commission. |
| And that’s the reason for this article. Several | | | | Considering the extra charges for each order at your |
| of my subscribers emailed me saying that they were | | | | local stock exchange, it might even be cheaper if you |
| interested in a stock but couldn’t purchase it | | | | buy the stocks at a foreign stock exchange where |
| in their country. Now why is that? | | | | volume is much higher. |
| If you want to buy Microsoft or Wall Mart stocks for | | | | And that’s exactly what you also do if you |
| instance, you will not experience any problems at | | | | find a good stock that you are eager to get hold of, |
| most stock exchanges let alone the USA. These two | | | | but can’t buy it in your country at all! You buy |
| stocks alone already have a trading volume of over | | | | your stocks at a foreign exchange which in most |
| 10 million + every day on Wall Street. Even the | | | | cases will be the country of the stocks origin. This will |
| regional stock exchanges like Chicago or San | | | | also involve higher charges because you gonna have |
| Francisco etc. have a high trading volume with | | | | to do this via 2 brokers. |
| Microsoft and Wall Mart. Buying and selling takes place | | | | So let’s take the Canadian Loblaw again. If I |
| within seconds. | | | | would like to buy this stock, I’m gonna have |
| But although most foreign stocks are also found on | | | | to see my broker here in Germany who will then buy |
| the trading floors of New York and other | | | | the stocks at the stock exchange in Toronto which |
| international exchanges, there are exceptions. Like | | | | will involve several extra commissions and charges. |
| the Canadian company Loblaw for example. You | | | | Because not only my broker will charge a commission |
| won’t see Loblaw stocks anywhere in | | | | but the broker in Canada too. So I’ll end up |
| Frankfurt, which is the largest stock exchange in | | | | paying 2 brokers who are involved in my transaction. |
| Germany. There’s only a bit of volume at the | | | | So that’s simply how it works. My broker will |
| regional stock exchange in Berlin. On average about | | | | contact a broker in Canada who will then make the |
| 17 stocks per day. And that’s nothing! | | | | purchase for me. And apart from extra charges |
| The same is true for other big exchanges too! You | | | | involved it will also take longer before the transaction |
| will not find every single stock in New York, London, | | | | goes through. |
| Frankfurt, Sydney or Hong Kong. It simply has to do | | | | But these extra commissions shouldn’t be |
| with supply and demand. If there’s hardly any | | | | overrated. If you find a great and solid stock that |
| demand for a stock in XYZ country — for | | | | you really want, then go for it and because if |
| whatever reason — you won’t have | | | | you’re an investor and not a trader, you are |
| the necessary supply. So either the stock is not | | | | probably contemplating a long-term investment |
| available in your country at all, or only at very low | | | | anyway. And in the long run, commissions and other |
| volumes. | | | | charges are negligible anyway. |
| The difficulty with very low trading volumes is, that if | | | | |