This book covers the economic principles underlying all financial markets, focusing on markets for equities, bonds, futures and options contracts.The Economics of Financial Markets presents a concise overview of capital markets, suitable for advanced undergraduates and for beginning graduate students in financial economics. Following a brief overview of financial markets--their microstructure and the randomness of stock market prices--this textbook explores how the economics of uncertainty can be applied to financial decision-making. Emphasis is placed on the economic principles underlying all financial markets, focusing on markets for equities, bonds, futures and options contracts.The Economics of Financial Markets presents a concise overview of capital markets, suitable for advanced undergraduates and for beginning graduate students in financial economics. Following a brief overview of financial markets--their microstructure and the randomness of stock market prices--this textbook explores how the economics of uncertainty can be applied to financial decision-making. Emphasis is placed on the economic principles underlying all financial markets, focusing on markets for equities, bonds, futures and options contracts.The Economics of Financial Markets presents a concise overview of capital markets, suitable for advanced undergraduates and for beginning graduate students in financial economics. Following a brief overview of financial markets--their microstructure and the randomness of stock market prices--this textbook explores how the economics of uncertainty can be applied to financial decision-making. Emphasis is placed on the economic principles underlying all financial markets, focusing on markets for equities, bonds, futures and options contracts.Preface; 1. Asset markets and asset prices; 2. Asset market microstructure; 3. Predictability of prices and market efficiency; 4. Decision making under uncertainty; 5. Portfolio selection: the mean-variance model; 6. ThlĂ