The stock market has been having a wild ride lately, mostly due to tech stocks , especially Nvidia, but also other companies . I know this because I decided to start saving for my retirement, at age 59. I opened an account with one of the online banks with a higher interest rate savings account and I put some of that savings into an IRA. Not a lot but it’s something.
I figured the odds are good for me living another 20-30 years so I better start investing. Haha! Better late than never!
I’ve learned a lot since I started doing this. At first I only used Robo advisor accounts, but I wanted to make my own trades . Now I have two self-directed accounts that I can play with. It’s really fun.
And at first I was having fun checking my investments every day, even though they say DO NOT DO THAT. But then things started getting crazy.
I lost most of the gains I had built up in three months (not a lot) in just a few days. Then it began to go up and down and up and down. I finally said , okay this is just volatility and hopefully it will be up in the long term. But I’m wondering how bad things will get before it stabilizes, because earnings reports are coming in for these tech stocks and the market is reacting. The problem is that these stocks are all in the ETFs I invested in, too. So when the whole market is affected, I lose.
It’s a learning experience and I’m still glad I did it. Market fluctuations are normal. But watching it happen can be a bit unnerving. I’m trying not to look.
I’m sure the political insanity is not helping. But another real issue is that the tech stocks were overvalued so it may take some time for them to get back to what I paid. The real question is how bad will it get.
Some are comparing it to the dot com bubble that happened in the early days of the internet when too much money was invested in companies that didn’t have any real value. Is this the AI bubble? Do we have too many chip companies now? Has the value of AI been oversold? Will it actually be worth the investment? Only time will tell. But you will find plenty of opinions if you ask investment advisers.
I’m afraid that long feared recession may finally be coming, but I hope it’s just a temporary reshuffle . I keep hearing about new layoffs and people maxing out their credit cards and that prices are starting to drop. When prices drop it means demand is dropping. It’s not out of the goodness of the corporate hearts.
What do you think? Are you in the market? Do you trade? Any predictions ?
Blue Skies and Green Pastures 
I am no expert, but I invested in my 401K. We really should teach basic economics in high school, but we don’t. Sigh!
I did not make a killing or anything. I think that requires more knowledge and work than most of us have. I just invested in a variety of mutual funds (diversified my investments) that seemed to be well run, and I waited. Nothing to brag about. Recently, I turned my money over to a financial advisor who makes his money off the earnings.
I kind of wish that I had remained in direct control of my investments, but I was not putting enough effort into the matter. So, I turned to an expert.
Frankly, I am not happy with the way investing works. The big problem is that our investment system is poorly managed by our government. When we invest in a mutual fund or ETF, the fund manager should be representing us on the boards of the public corporations in which the mutual fund is invested. However, it is less trouble and expense for a mutual fund to simply disinvest in a corporation which needs management changes.
The end result is that the people who own corporations actually don’t run them. The raises the question. Who is running them? Well, given the behavior of some of these big companies, it seems some investment companies and large investors exercise disproportionate influence, and they seem more concerned about politics than profit.
That’s one reason I prefer choosing my own stocks. But it’s still good that you have a 401k.
Do you exercise your option to help elect board members?
No, I just started investing. I’m still learning.
You may find it easier said than done.
I don’t have a lot to invest right now anyway . Mostly trying to pay the bills. No one told me how expensive getting old would be!
It does sneak up on us.