Over the last few weeks, the Dow Jones plummeted 10,000 points.
Fear rampaged through the markets. Investors sold just about everything in panic. Great stocks plummeted to unsustainable lows. All thanks to coronavirus fear.
However, it looks as if the fear may be subsiding – at least temporarily.
All thanks to news of a falling death rate in Europe.
Italy for example reported 525 cases in a single day – its lowest daily toll in two weeks, says The Guardian. It’s also a possible indication things may be slowly improving in the region. France also reported its lower daily toll in a week, as Spain said fatality numbers fell for the third straight day.
There’s also hope for improvement in the U.S. In fact, President Trump just said, “We are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel,” even though he also noted, “In the days ahead America will endure the peak of this terrible pandemic.”
That was also followed with U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adam’s warning that this was going to “the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans’ lives.”
“This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9/11 moment, only it’s not going to be localized; it’s going to be happening all over the country,” Adams added.
Economist El-Erian is Also Encouraged
After weeks of telling investors not to buy the dip, economist Mohamed EL-Erian says, “I’m feeling better. We’re having a bounce on medical issues, not on policy issues, not on technical issues,” as quoted by CNBC. “it’s about people, fewer people dying, fewer people getting infected. I’ve also said it’s a medical solution that forms a bottom for this market.”
However, we’re not out of the woods just yet.
We need to see sustainably low numbers around the world before we can begin to get excited about any improvements. We need more than just a few days of better reports. Until then, it’s best to prepare for the potential for further volatility.
To you and yours, stay safe out there.
