How is the stock market NOT zero-sum?

[DcifrThs]

there is a very wide variety of responses here. i'll chime in with what i've learned.

it is very simple: for you to buy and hold a stock, it must offer a return above the "risk free rate," otherwise you'd just hold treasuries. this extra return can be called a risk premium since you must be compensated for the extra risk you take on by holding stocks instead of treasuries (which i've assumed here are risk free).

therefore, stocks must increase over the logn run by more than the adjusted rate of default (which would make their EV the same as treasuries) in order for investors to hold them.

this risk premium is "transferred" from the issuers of shares since they are the ones on the line to make the ivnestment attractive to shareholders.

Barron