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fix(benchmark): compare agents against DJIA total return (DIA baseline) - #1435

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fix(benchmark): compare agents against DJIA total return (DIA baseline)#1435
shuxue6662-a11y wants to merge 1 commit into
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shuxue6662-a11y:codex/fix-benchmark-total-return

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Fixes #1434

Summary

The tutorial compares agents that trade dividend-adjusted (total-return) prices against a ^DJI baseline, which is a price-return index. The two sides therefore use different return definitions, and the reported gap includes the DJIA dividend stream (~+1.92%/yr over 2018-2025, per the issue's measurement) regardless of agent behavior.

This PR makes the baseline total-return too:

  • examples/FinRL_StockTrading_2026_3_Backtest.py: download DIA (the DJIA-tracking ETF) with auto_adjust=True instead of ^DJI, with a comment explaining the convention.
  • finrl/plot.py: change the backtest_plot default baseline_ticker from ^DJI to DIA. get_baseline already routes through YahooDownloader, which adjusts close prices for distributions, so the plotted baseline now matches the agent's total-return account value.
  • README.md: clarify that the DJIA baseline is total return via the DIA ETF.

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@shuxue6662-a11y

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Hi @spencerromo, this PR fixes the benchmark convention mismatch described in #1434 (agents trade total-return prices while the ^DJI baseline is price-return only). The baseline now uses DIA with adjusted prices in both the tutorial and plot.py. Happy to adjust if you prefer documenting the convention instead.

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Benchmark comparison: agent trades dividend-adjusted prices while the DJIA baseline is price-return only

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