Amateur Virtual Investing Using Google Finance

Investing in the stock market is not just for people who have money but also for broke people like myself who want to shell out virtual dollars to make smart and profitable investments that gain them nothing more than the illusion of being a rich person. I recently decided to invest $50,000 of my own money in the stock market using Google Finance.

It is very easy to set up an investment portfolio if you have an account with Google. One can find lots of information about companies to invest in, track the stock over time, evaluate its performance in terms of some industry parameters and compare it with similar companies. Buying and selling stocks is effortless.

I decided to invest about $50,000 in sectors that should grow and be profitable during this economic recession. Energy seemed like a good choice because of the price of oil. Whichever company could provide energy, preferably cheaply and efficiently would be worthy of my investment. Cost of energy has driven up transportation costs and I have invested in companies providing cheap modes of transportation as well as those seeking alternative energy solutions. Cost of food has been rising globally as a result of energy costs as well as droughts. So, I bought stocks from companies providing cheap food in retail stores to those in agrobusiness.

My portfolio now includes YHOO WMT FDO DLTR TM ACCL CSX AGU FCEL and I have lost $500 overnight. Lucky for me, it is not real money.

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