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What to do during a stock market sell-off

Tough times mean tough – but not impossible – decisions for fund investors
What to do during a stock market sell-offPublished on August 16, 2024
  • Market crashes are a disconcerting prospect but can throw up some opportunities
  • How do investors make the most of opportunities, and avoid the biggest mistakes?

August’s market activity has been a reminder, if it were needed, that markets do not go up in a straight line. With volatility still elevated, the risk of making costly decisions has also risen, but there are ways to ensure you don’t compound your losses through bad practices.

The calmer water of recent days will have gone some way to reassuring investors that their strategies are still on track. Still, it’s easy to feel calm after the fact, or to nod knowingly at the comment that corrections (even those far sharper than this month’s) are part and parcel of long-term investment success. Much harder is steeling yourself in the midst a sell-off – you don’t need to be a behavioural economist to know that ignoring panicky headlines, or panicky charts, can be a hard ask.

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