Over the past several weeks, the stock markets have been experiencing some heavy swings. For those of us who are starting to keep a closer eye on our investments and retirement funds, these swings can be pretty concerning.
In just the past week alone, the Dow Jones Industrial Index experienced its largest single gain in history. Then it declined on Tuesday — followed by a huge upswing again on Wednesday. Thursday, at market close the Dow was down almost 970 points.
Jonathan Hlavac, a certified financial planner with Everhart Advisors in Miamisburg says that, while it’s normal for markets to go up and down, right now there’s a lot of nervousness out there. There’s COVID-19, uncertain foreign trade deals, and even the upcoming presidential election.
Hlavac says his office is has had a significant increase in calls from worried clients recently, and advises that the smartest thing to do right now is to stay calm.
“These kinds of market fluctuations are not only possible but they are probable,” he says. “So, to people who aren't far away from retirement — individuals who are 20, 30, 40, or even 50 years old — for the most part we're telling them to try to avoid overreacting to what is, right at this point, a short-term negative fluctuation in the market.”
Hlavak says as people get closer to retirement, you should move your money to more conservative investment plans. That way you’ll start to protect yourself against the effects of market volatility. If you haven’t checked your retirement plans in a while, Hlavak says now’s a great time to reach out to your financial advisor.
