What Works: Getting Started at Trading Foreign Stocks

Of all of the advances online trading has wrought, easy access to foreign stocks is not one of them. And that's not such a bad thing.

Between the numerous exchanges, out-of-sync schedules, currency conversions and liquidity risks -- and the lack of good info on the Web about each of these factors -- buying overseas stocks online is not a wise approach for most people.

But that doesn't leave the overseas U.S. investor without options. Over the next several days I'll detail various ways U.S. investors can tap foreign markets. Today, I'll provide a primer on buying individual stocks, both ADRs -- essentially the U.S.-traded version of foreign stocks -- and stocks that are issued on a local exchange, called "foreign ordinaries." ...