What Should I Do? Nothing.
March 23, 2020
The burnout of the markets continues unabated on the back of the Covid-19 Black Swan event. There are many who are struggling to come to terms with this. As the full implication of the pandemic is taking hold, the markets are experiencing new lows every other day.
When will the markets turn around? Will it or can it get worse?
The simple answer is no one knows. That is the truth. The market is unable to model the risk flowing through and even if the so-called professionals say they can predict something, we can safely assume they are all wrong.
We have to accept that the situation is scary. The reality of the current state and the scale of the market losses is terrifying. Equities, Bonds, Gold, Alternatives, all asset classes have caught the virus.
We should avoid doing anything when the markets and all of us are in the grip of uncertainty with zero clarity. When we put money into investments, we signed up for the volatility. Don’t look for signs of opportunity or doom in the volatility. At this point, the gyrations of the market is just noise and we should learn to tune out.
The lock-down we are seeing across countries is a great metaphor for what we should be doing in the current situation with the markets. Practice social distancing with the markets. Don’t touch your face-Don’t touch your investments. (unless you need the cash right now..). Just like the pandemic will eventually be brought under control, the markets too will stabilize and will find their level. You can decide what to do once the panic subsides. Hopefully, some or most of your investments will recover their lost value in due course.
Time in the market beats timing the market. For those of us who have been in the markets for some time now- Just Bunker down and ride the storm. And remember, there is always a silver lining in every crisis. You just can’t see it right now !!. Stay safe, stay positive.