Down 18%, Is the Stock Market Safe to Invest in Right Now?
The S&P 500 is approximately 18% down from its peak, producing a crummy 2022 for most investors. A down market can mess with your head; a dozen questions can run through your mind. Do you pull your money out of the market? Do you keep buying? When will the market turn around?
If you look hard enough, you'll find that everyone has a different opinion for every question you could ask. Ultimately, nobody can know what the market will do and when; the great Peter Lynch once said that "if you spend 13 minutes a year on economics, you've wasted ten minutes." Instead, focus on these things you can control, and you'll feel comfortable investing in the stock market, no matter if it's up or down.
Figuring out when the stock market will top or bottom is consistently one of the hottest talking points on Wall Street, yet it's a question with no firm answer. A stock's peak or bottom is often only apparent in hindsight, despite what some people might tell you. Think about it; if someone could time the tops and bottoms, they would be the world's richest person, not entrepreneurs like Elon Musk or investors with decades-long investing careers like Warren Buffett.
Source Fool.com
