Stan Choe and Cora Lewis, AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) – Like all the world-shaking upsetting changes, giant swing rocking wall streets may feel far from normal. But at least to invest, this is all typical.
The sudden movement of the US stock market is regularly occurring, as it has recently dropped by 6% in just a few weeks. What makes them mad is the prices investors have to pay for the greater revenue the stock can offer over other investments in the long run.
This time it’s not much different, experts say. This gives a glimpse into what lies behind the wild movements of the market and the experts who advise experts to consider whether they are old or young.
The market is bad, right?
It certainly is a struggle. The stock market’s main benchmark, the S&P 500 has fallen since its highest level in history, mainly due to concerns that President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the US economy are not moving more strongly than economists expected.
Any kind of uncertainty about the economy will be suspended on Wall Street. These tariffs have had an especially unwavering effect, as no one knows how long Trump will pass with them. If you are concerned, stock will sink sharply. Stocks bounced back like Wednesday when Wall Street returned thinking Trump was using tariffs as merely a negotiation tactic.
Does stocks do this frequently?
yes. The S&P 500 has regularly seen a larger decrease than this recent one, at over 10% each year. In many cases, experts view stock prices as an optimistic cul that can otherwise run overboard and may be too high.
Before this recent stumbling, many critics have already said that the US stock market is too high after prices rose faster than corporate profits. They also pointed out how a handful of companies drive many of the market returns. According to the S&P Dow Jones index, just seven major high-tech companies make up more than half of the S&P 500 total returns last year.
Should I sell it out?
Seeing investors losing money makes me feel sick. This recent run has made me particularly worried because of how incredibly calm the market has been in the past. The S&P 500 has appeared for the second consecutive year, where he was shot more than 20%. This was the first time that happened since Buggy Pants last piled up style in front of the Millennium.
The sale may offer some peace of mind. But it also prevents opportunities to be trapped in losses and earn money over time. Historically, the S&P 500 has finally returned from all of its downturn to make investors all over the whole thing. These include Great Fear Presion, Dot-Com Bust and the symbiotic crash of 2020.
Some recovery takes longer than others, but experts often recommend not stocking up on your inventory for several years or up to ten years of money you can’t afford to lose.
“Historically, it has shown that no one can spend time on the market,” says Papadimitriou, CEO of Wallethub. “No one can understand when it’s best to buy and sell consistently.”
Put another way, I suggest “keep up” Chris Fasciano, vice president of investment management and research, and Chief Market Strategist at Commonwealth Financial Network.
Do I need to change anything with my investment?
Despite the overall US stock market decline, some corners outside the epic Seven have been much better, Fasciano said. There are also stocks outside the US.
Investors can be reminded to often do their best when they have different investment sets rather than just a few times. And investors may not be as diverse as they thought after years of domination by Seven, a grander Seven than the US stock market and the global market.
“Now is the time to revisit some of the old and proven portfolio structures, like diversification,” Fasciano said.
I just started investing in stocks. What should I do?
The surge in online trading platforms and ease of smartphones have helped create a new generation of investors who may not be used to such volatility.
But the good news is that young investors often have gifts of time. If they had decades before they retire, they would ride the waves and hope that their stock portfolio would work out, grow even bigger and eventually even bigger.
“We advise young investors not to worry about this at all,” said Phil Battin, CEO of Ambassador Wealth Management. “It’s just background noise. If 30-50 years before you need money, the economy survived the world war, the oil embargo, the assassination of the president, Y2K, and the global pandemic. It would survive Trump’s tariffs too.”
How about the cipher?
This is a little difficult. “In theory, part of the appeal of crypto is that it is thought to be hedge investments that are not correlated with the stock market or the Fiat currency economy,” says Samtaub, lead investor at Nald Wallet.
But in reality, at least recently, Crypto often has prices falling when the stock drops, instead of offering the protection it wants while selling Wall Street. “So young investors may need to rethink the idea that Crypto’s value is completely independent from the stock market and the wider economy,” Taube said.
What happens if I retire?
Older investors have less time than younger investors, which allows their investment to bounce back. But even in retirement, some people will need to invest in order to last for more than 30 years, said Niladri “Neel” Mukherjee, Chief Investment Officer at Tiaa Wealth Management.
Those who have already retired may want to cut their spending and withdrawals after a sharp market slump. But at least in the early parts of retirement, even retirees should be invested in stocks to prepare for the potential for decades of spending.
“You might want to slow it down and back up when the market recovers,” Mukherjee said.
How long will this last?
No one knows. Otherwise, don’t let anyone tell you.
Original issue: March 6, 2025, 2:38pm
