KEY MESSAGE: InFinancial Markets and Institutions,best-selling authors Mishkin and Eakins provide a practical introduction to prepare readers for todayrs"s changing landscape of financial markets and institutions. A unifying framework uses a few core principles to organize readers'thinking then examines the models as real-world scenarios from a practitionerrs"s perspective. By analyzing these applications, readers develop the critical-thinking and problem-solving skills necessary to respond to challenging situations in their future careers. Introduction:Why Study Financial Markets and Institutions?; Overview of the Financial System.Fundamentals of Financial Markets:What Do Interest Rates Mean and What Is Their Role in Valuation?; Why Do Interest Rates Change?; How Do Risk and Term Structure Affect Interest Rates?; Are Financial Markets Efficient?Central Banking and the Conduct of Monetary Policy:Structure of Central Banks and the Federal Reserve System; Conduct of Monetary Policy: Tools, Goals, Strategy, and Tactics.Financial Markets:The Money Markets; The Bond Market; The Stock Market; The Mortgage Markets; The Foreign Exchange Market; The International Financial System.Fundamentals of Financial Institutions:Why Do Financial Institutions Exist?; What Should Be Done About Conflicts of Interest? A Central Issue in Business Ethics.The Financial Institutions Industry:Banking and the Management of Financial Institutions; Commercial Banking Industry: Structure and Competition; Savings Associations and Credit Unions; Banking Regulation; The Mutual Fund Industry; Insurance Companies and Pension Funds; Investment Banks, Security Brokers and Dealers, and Venture Capital Firms.The Management of Financial Institutions:Risk Management in Financial Institutions; Hedging with Financial Derivatives.On the Web:Finance Companies. For all readers interested in financial markets and institutions.