Volatility remains elevated today as investors are still unsure about how the trade war will end…
This morning, China upped tariffs on U.S. good to 125% in retaliation to President Donald Trump’s latest move.
At this point, I’m not sure if anyone (outside of Trump himself) has any idea of how this plays out with China in the next few weeks.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is up again today even as the S&P 500 tries to end the week on a positive note. The VIX has been trading above 30 for over a week – a rare circumstance that indicates just how worried investors are about the current and future situation.
The VIX isn’t the only way we can measure investors’ concerns about the future of the stock market. The American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) has continued to be dominated by the bears in its weekly sentiment survey.
Heck, even the people in my business – investment newsletters – are about as bearish as they have been in the last 15 years. The Investors Intelligence Index is at its lowest level since the 2022 bear market. It has only been lower a few times since 2010.
Regular readers know I’m a contrarian. So in my eyes, it’s a big bullish signal to see individual investors as well as peers in my industry basically give up on the stock market.
The numbers and action we’re witnessing are unprecedented and can’t be ignored. But at the same time, history shows that when fear and uncertainty reach these kinds of levels, it’s a great time to buy if you have a 12-month time horizon.
You won’t buy at the bottom, but that shouldn’t matter if you’re investing for a longer time frame.
So as we head into the weekend, here’s my advice: Stick with your strategy. Now is your chance to buy into the market. Be on the lookout for quality companies on sale.
Here’s to the future,
Matt McCallEditor, Market Insights
P.S. In that same vein, here’s one last shameless plug to watch the live video I recorded earlier this week.
If you’re feeling anxious about the current state of the market, I encourage you to give this a watch. It’s 100% free to do so.
The statistics I share during my presentation are invaluable. And I think they lend an important perspective – the kind that’s being overlooked by the mainstream media right now.
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