Anyone who is fortunate enough to have a bit of spare cash can consult the financial pages, pick specific companies to invest in and buy shares in certain companies with the hope that their value will increase. It's an enticing way to generate returns that outpace inflation. But that dynamic has changed in the past few decades, with fewer companies choosing to list their shares on stock exchanges, and make them available to a wide audience. This shift means savers have fewer options to choose from, and risk losing out on opportunities to invest in some of the world's most innovative and fastest growing companies. There's been a net reduction of $120 billion in public equities this year, according to JPMorgan analysts, a figure that dwarfs last year's $40bn decrease and marks the third consecutive year of decline. JPMorgan's data suggests persistent uncertainty among companies worldwide. Share buybacks ' when companies repurchase their own shares from shareholders in the market '...
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