# List of indices on the Australian stock market



## warakawa (6 August 2010)

can someone be kind enough to give a link to all the available indices on the Australian market. I tried to look for one on ASX but I could find anything.


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## Timmy (6 August 2010)

Is this any good?  From the S&P website:
http://www.standardandpoors.com/indices/main/en/us/






The second pic shows the available S&P indices for the ASX


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## Timmy (6 August 2010)

There is also this, from the ASX website: http://www.asx.com.au/asx/statistics/indexInfo.do


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## warakawa (6 August 2010)

thanks guys, that's so many indices. I'm confused, which one should I use to measure the movements? All the media seem to use all ords, should I use another index other than all ords.


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## noie (6 August 2010)

The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) is Australia's premier market indicator. The index represents the 500 largest companies listed on the ASX. Market capitalisation is the only eligibility requirement of constituents, as liquidity is not considered, with the exception of foreign domiciled companies.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) is recognised as the investable benchmark for the Australian equity market, it addresses the needs of investment managers to benchmark against a portfolio characterised by sufficient size and liquidity. The S&P/ASX 200 is comprised of the S&P/ASX 100 plus an additional 100 stocks. It forms the basis for the S&P/ASX 200 Index Future and Options and the SPDR S&P/ASX 200 Exchange Traded Fund (ETF).

(to gauge the performance of Australian companies compared to the rest of the world i use the all ords..)

edit, yes i just copied that from the links the guys gave you


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## cutz (6 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> which one should I use to measure the movements?




What are your objectives ?


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## pixel (6 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> thanks guys, that's so many indices. I'm confused, which one should I use to measure the movements? All the media seem to use all ords, should I use another index other than all ords.




remember the old saw "Horses for Courses"?
That's how it is with shares as well.

If you want to compare a share to the broad market, the broadest (because based on 500 ASX shares) is the All Ords.
If you wish to compare it to its peers, you'd do well to use the appropriate sector index: XTJ for telcos, XEJ for energy stocks, etc.

Sorry, there is no easier way "trade and gain without thinking pain"


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## Julia (6 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> thanks guys, that's so many indices. I'm confused, which one should I use to measure the movements? All the media seem to use all ords, should I use another index other than all ords.



Let's use an example.  Say you're considering investing in a stock in the top 200.  Your broker website will likely have the facility (I can only speak for sure re Etrade) where you can bring up a chart of the stock you're considering, and set the chart to show the SP of that stock for any given period, comparing it with the XJO.  A very simple means of seeing how your stock compares with the index.  Obviously, you can do the same thing with another index which is relevant to the industry group your preferred stock falls into.


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## warakawa (7 August 2010)

Can I assume an index as a larger version of a portfolio?


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## So_Cynical (7 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> Can I assume an index as a larger version of a portfolio?




A index is a group of stocks put together according to some measure/criteria.

A portfolio is a group of stocks put together by you according to your criteria.

i sometimes think of my portfolio as the Cynical/ASX 20 :venus:


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## pixel (8 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> Can I assume an index as a larger version of a portfolio?




Not so much a portfolio, but rather a benchmark.
As Julia xplained, you can compare your share's (or your portfolio's) performance against the XJO or All Ords. Try and outperform the XJO; if you can't, then you may be better off buying a Managed fund that tracks the market.


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## awg (8 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> Can I assume an index as a larger version of a portfolio?





I am not exactly sure what this question is asking, however;

(and this may not be the question you are asking)

Stock code STW is an ETF that almost exactly mirrors the XJO 200

Therefore many investors include a proportion of STW in their portfolio because it means that component of their portfolio will track the index (minus the relativly low fee off about .4%)

Search STW on this forum for more detail if interested


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## warakawa (8 August 2010)

hey Gies

if i wanted to use the asx 200 as my benchmark what type of disadvantages can it post as i was thinking of investing in jb hi fi


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## So_Cynical (8 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> hey Gies
> 
> if i wanted to use the asx 200 as my benchmark what type of disadvantages can it post as i was thinking of investing in jb hi fi




JBH - STW comparison chart shows JBH out performing the ASX200 index by quite a bit, but then add HDF into the comparison and it blows them both outa the water both in SP growth and dividend yield.

Comparing any one non financial/top 15 stock to the ASX200 is going to give some wild variations...but in essence beating the index is always a good thing, the more the better especially if the index is falling al-la GFC.
~


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## pixel (8 August 2010)

warakawa said:


> hey Gies
> 
> if i wanted to use the asx 200 as my benchmark what type of disadvantages can it post as i was thinking of investing in jb hi fi




You'd also have to specify the "investing period". Attached two charts show JBH in blue, XJO in red. In order to "compare" the two benchmark-style, I draw the Closing prices on a percentage scale, both normalised at 0% on the left edge of the respective chart.

The result proves that in the long run (weekly chart over 3 years), JBH has significantly outperformed the market average, gaining 62% when XJO lost 28%. 




However, as it has outperformed the XJO especially after the Low early 2009, right now may not be the best time to buy JBH because it appears to be near the top of its range - especially since early this year, when it lost 12% against XJO's 4% gain.


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