Back to the 20th Century
This chart from the WSJ says it all in summarizing the state of the stock market and the record lows breached today. The Dow Jones industrial average finished more than 360 points lower, dropping below the 10,000 mark for the first time in five years, and to levels first reached in 1999. However, the good news, relatively speaking, is that the Dow finished well above intraday lows (800 points or about 8 percent) on speculation that central banks around the world are poised to take action by cutting rates. I imagine there was also some covering action and speculative positioning involved in the minor recovery.
Its days like this (or a series on days in this case) that makes one want to sell everything and just hold on to some good ol' cash. Even bullish market pundits like Jim Cramer are saying to sell everything as he sees no recovery in the next few years. Ouch. I keep repeating the mantra...long term investor, long term investor.... but for some reason this brings me little solace.
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October 6, 2008 6:15 PM
I'm will Jim. Sell everything and move to gold.
October 7, 2008 5:24 AM
Cramer said that you should sell your stocks only if you will need the money invested in those stocks within the next five years. I think that this is god advice and common sense regardless of what the market is doing. If you need that money within five years, it shouldn't have been in stocks to begin with.
RDS
http://financialvalues.blogspot.com/
October 7, 2008 2:18 PM
Curt - Gold? That is even more volatile than the stock market right now. But is a safe haven I guess, so will look into moving part of my portfolio into it. What is the best way to invest in Gold?
RDS - Thanks for the clarification. I enjoy watching Jim for entertainment value, but he seems to flip/flop a lot and likes to get attention by making grandoise statements. Good for ratings I guess. Your last point is spot on - don't invest more than you can afford.
October 7, 2008 2:20 PM
This was a great post! There is so much turbulence in the market today, and people need peace of mind more than ever. I wanted to offer your readers a link to another blogger who is doing great work. He writes about our 'childhood money messages' and how the best approach to stability in today's market is to resist letting these emotions control our buying/selling habits. It is really fascinating work, and something you should all check out. His name is Spencer Sherman, and you can view his blog at http://www.curemoneymadness.com/blog.
October 7, 2008 4:21 PM
Gold is just as volatile as the stock market as its historically been used as a 'crisis hedge'. It track record as a inflation hedge is spotty, particularly if you pay attention to the price of gold over the last 20 years.
Besides selling paper assets for Dollars as Andy said, hypothetically what could you do with those Dollars? Open an interbank acct in various other currencies and play a conservative strategy? What about bonds, businesses, or commercial real estate? I'm all ears to continuing commentary in this regard!
October 7, 2008 7:30 PM
What Tech Boom? Going back to 1999 just means that the return from the dot com era have all evaporated and Americans are almost 10 years poorer! What a sad state and I am glad I no longer live in America.
October 12, 2008 2:52 PM
Well you guys forget that the P/E ratios have dropped significantly since 1999 in addition to the inrease in dividends that companies are distributing to shareholders. I think that it is a bad time to panic and sell it all. Moving to gold? Based off the past 200,100, 50,20, years of gold prices I don't like what i see there. Gold doesn't produce any income unlike stocks or real estate trusts. It also costs $$$ to store it. Just because gold has been increasing since the early 2000's doesn't necesarily mean that it's a good investment.
Dividend Growth Investor