What kind of investment can I make with only 4K? I don't just want to let it sit in the bank..?
Answers: If you have 4k earned income, put it in a Roth IRA, invest it in a Total Market ETF and build around it. Leave it for 40-50 years and you'll be happy you did!
It really depends on your goals and your tolerance for risk. You could put it into a mutual fund, a CD, treasury bills, bonds, money market account. and a wide variety of other things. That's enough money that it might be worth going to see a financial planner. Many banks are not offering savings accounts with decent interest rates (over 4%) if you open on line and accept terms such as limited access.
Putting it into an IRA is a good idea, but if you do so remember that you can't touch it until you're 59½ (I think that's the age) without penalties.
Your first option should be to fund fully a retirement account. If you do this, and you have extra cash, then one of the best things you can do is open a DRIP Plan.
They are seldom talked about because brokers make very little money when they suggest them. Yet, they have proven to be one of the best, if not the best, long-term strategy on Wall Street.
They are perfect for small investors, as well as big investors. They are safe and allow you to not care about whether the market is going up or down.
Go buy some small quantities of low risk stocks.
Why the emerging markets are rising?
Answers: What goes up also comes down !!
They Aren't
Most are down double digits in the past several months.
emerging markets like that of India and china are rising because of many reasons;
1. low cost workforce available which resulted in large amounts of business being outsourced to these countries.
2. maximum number of working age people are from these countries.
3. the economic growth is around 9% which is highest in the world.
Emerging markets like India and China have been neglected for a quite while now. People have started seeing the value in these markets and what they have in store for the future. World class top trading companies are listed on these markets today, and a lot of value unwinding can be seen in these markets. So people are choosing emerging markets as their next destination to invest in.
Are there any websites that have stock investing games that you can play?
Answers: I believe thinkorswim.com has free paper trading. If not, do a search for paper trading account.
Investopedia.com has a stock and option simulation