Dan Solin's video: Shame On The Financial Media

by Dan Solin, DanielSolin.com The S&P 500 got clobbered in 2018. It was down more than 6%. The last quarter of 2018 was particularly bad. The S&P 500 dropped 13.97%. The financial media and the securities industry saw a golden opportunity. All they had to do was convince investors to panic and “flee to safety.” It worked. In December alone, mutual funds invested in stocks and bonds lost a record $152 billion in assets. Think of all those juicy commissions. Fast forward to January, 2019. As of January 18, 2019, the S&P 500 index was up a whopping 6.54%. Investors overreacted to the December losses and missed out on the recovery in January. No one knows how the market will perform for the balance of the year – or beyond. But investors who stick to a disciplined plan, and don’t react to short-term volatility, are better positioned to achieve their financial goals. “Doing nothing” is often the best decision or investors. But don’t expect the financial media to give you that advice.