(08-07-2019, 10:19 AM)StroudCrowd1 Wrote:

(08-07-2019, 10:14 AM)HURRICANE!!! Wrote: Hope your stop-loss orders are working properly -- down 400+ right now.  I ended up moving to a 2010 plan which is only 50% bonds so I'm still incurring some market risk --- seemed like a good idea at that time i was making the change.  The cool thing is that if we minimize losses throughout the instability of China trade war and No Deal Brexit, we can go aggressive during the upturn as you know Trump will do everything possible to have the market in an upturn during the 2020 election year.  Word has it that China may try to ride this out until our election.

If you are younger and actively contributing to your investment account whether it be employer based 401(k) or other investment vehicle, you shouldn't even remotely panic. Routinely purchasing stock every 2 weeks is going to average out your cost basis over time anyway.

However, if you are retired, you are screwed.

J/K, but trying to time the market seldom works.

Yes and no.  If you're invested in a 401(k) or something like that then you will be fine over the long term.  An investor like me who manages their own money follows the stock market and make moves based on indicators.  It's not really "timing" the market.  As an example, I don't buy stock "every two weeks" just to buy stock.  I take a look at market conditions, prices, trends etc. and buy on the dips and hold until there is a downward indicator.  As an example, the tech sector has pretty much been on fire up until a few days ago.  Over the last few days the sector as a whole has taken a beating.  Once some of this trade war stuff settles down a bit buying in while it's low can yield a pretty good gain.  Take a look at the YTD chart for XLK as an example.  Buying the dip could be risky since much of the tech sector is tied in with global markets and more specifically China.  However, buying the dip at the right time could yield good results.

Me personally, I'm not going to buy anything at the moment until the market stabilizes a bit more.  I'm still invested in some sectors that tend to be "safer" especially during a downturn.

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