The DJIA, which tracks the performance of 30 blue
chip companies, and the S&P 500, which follows 500 leading
U.S. companies in leading industries, provide snapshots of how
the stock market is doing. They’re also
often seen as bellwethers of the economic health of the country.
In fact, the S&P 500 is one of ten components comprising the
Index of Leading Economic Indicators,
the primary
tool for forecasting up and downs in the economy.
The DJIA, founded in 1896, began as a list of industrial companies but has expanded to include banks, retailers, telecommunications and Internet companies, and pharmaceutical firms, among others. Of the 12 stocks in the original list, only one — General Electric — remains, though it lost its place and was reinstated twice between 1898 and 1907.
The DJIA, which tracks the performance of 30 blue
chip companies, and the S&P 500, which follows 500 leading
U.S. companies in leading industries, provide snapshots of how
the stock market is doing. They’re also
often seen as bellwethers of the economic health of the country.
In fact, the S&P 500 is one of ten components comprising the
