The Semiosis of Stock Market Indices: Taking Charles Sanders Peirce to a Trading Room

Tom Duterme

doi:10.3384/VS.2001-5992.2023.10.1.10-31

Authors

Tom Duterme University of Louvain

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3384/VS.2001-5992.2023.10.1.10-31

Keywords:

stock market index, semiotics, finance, Peirce, trading room

Abstract

Stock market indices are among the signs populating financial markets and allowing traders to support their valuation work. The movements of the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 are constantly monitored, but how are they interpreted? Is this interpretation unique to each trader? Does it depend on how the indices are communicated? Considering these questions, this article aims to illustrate the heuristic interests of Charles Sanders Peirce’s semiotics. Peirce’s concepts can elucidate that stock indices assume different semiotic statuses. Depending on the financial context in which they operate, their signification and thus their function for traders will vary. This article demonstrates the usefulness of these concepts through empirical illustrations drawn from the literature, the financial press and a fieldwork in a trading room. Beyond this case study, this article reveals how the Peircian toolbox contributes to the studies of valuation signs.

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