Putting Things in Perspective

Not to minimize the decline, but a 60/40 portfolio is down just over 5% year-to-date

Not to minimize the decline, but the S&P 500 is still up 200% over the last ten years

Not to minimize the decline, but stocks are trading at the same place they were last August

Not to minimize the decline, but the average intra-year drawdown is 15.8%, this morning we hit 18.9%

Not to minimize the decline, but the S&P 500 declined 4% or more in a single session 44 times since 1950

Not to minimize the decline, but stocks fell 89% in the Great Depression, 50% in the dotcom bubble, and almost 60% in the Great Financial Crisis

Not to minimize the decline, but expected returns go higher as stocks go lower

Not to minimize the decline, but dividend yields go up as stocks go down

Not to minimize the decline, but any financial plan that can’t withstand a 20% decline in stocks was never a real plan to begin with

Not to minimize the decline, but if stocks weren’t risky they would never go down, and if they never went down they would never go up