Sometimes when they show the stock market on the news, it does look like there's a bunch of animals on the trading floor. The stock market does get it's name from animals. People used to, and still do, gather together to sell their livestock, so livestock, eh? Get it?

As far as bears and bulls running around ... no. When your brother talks about bears, he's describing the latest stock market trend. "Bear" means bad, as far as stocks prices are concerned. A bear market is when stocks are going down. You can also call the market "bearish". A "bull" market on the other hand means that stocks are on the way up, which is good news. "Bullish" is a good word to use then.

I don't know where the terms came from, but now you know that it's just stock market insider slang. So, next time your brother is around, ask him if he had a bear of a date last week. :)

Did You Know?

A long time ago, traders met outside under a tree to trade stocks! This lasted for almost 50 years! And there were no rules at all!