VineLesson 106 · Written for kid, teen, and little
International stocks — the world is bigger than the US
About half the world's stocks live outside America.
The US isn't the only place with great companies — about half the world's stock value lives outside America, in places like Japan, Korea, and Europe. Owning some international stocks spreads your bets even wider, so you're not betting everything on one country. Different regions take turns leading, so going global smooths out the ride over decades. 🌍
Words to know
5International stocks
Shares of companies based outside your own country.
VXUS
A fund holding thousands of companies from around the world outside the US, in one ticker.
Recency bias
Assuming whatever has done best lately will keep winning — which leads people to skip international.
Diversification
Spreading money across many companies, sectors, AND countries to lower risk.
Market cap
A company's total size in dollars; used to compare US vs world markets.
In SIFMA’s 2025 Fact Book, about half of 2024 global listed-company equity value was outside the U.S. Swipe RIGHT for TRUE, LEFT for myth.
About half of global listed-company equity value was outside the U.S. in 2024.
Swipe the card — or tap.
In the full lesson
- 1True or false
Vine has 107 lessons like this one, each written three ways so a 7-year-old and a 17-year-old both get a version that fits.