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Are the effect of the coronavirus on the stock market could be opportunity for investing? The SP500 went down 8% this past 4 days. I'm wondering if that will

Are the effect of the coronavirus on the stock market could be opportunity for investing? The SP500 went down 8% this past 4 days. I'm wondering if that will go lower those next days. I have a bit amount of money on the side, I didn't know where to invest. Would now be a good opportunity to lump sum all the money, or would you Dollar Cost Average? Anyone else with the same dilemma, and would have more arguments?

jbob2000 7y ago
Dollar cost average is your best bet since things are uncertain right now and you, as a retail investor, don't have up-to-date information and can't act very quickly. Your best investments are things that people can't say "no" to; infrastructure and utilities. Banks, railways, power companies, mining companies, and shipping are all things that reasonably hold their value no matter the economic circumstances. You could take a gamble on a pharmaceutical outfit, but if these companies are chasing a corona virus vaccine, they will probably take on a lot of debt to achieve it, which may bite them later.
jstewartmobile 7y ago
the vulture approach to investing tends to be materially profitable yet karmically ruinous
- pradn 7y ago
  Another way to look at it is that you're optimistic that the crisis will be resolved.
rurp 7y ago
You're never going to get a useful answer to a question like this. If the market is efficient, which is a good default assumption, it's already factored in a weighted average of possible outcomes. Anybody who can reliably spot inefficiencies in the market is too busy making ridiculous amounts of money to respond on HN.
kpennell 7y ago
I'm only betting small amounts and money I could lose....but I bet a 6 month put option using robinhood app on SPY and VTI and it's ready made me a good chunk of cash.
sfj 7y ago
Just my opinion but I don't think it's a good time. Supply chain disruptions haven't turned into shortages, yet. The USA and other countries are with all certainty hiding the extent of the problem and the media is going along with it. There are going to be some more news bombshells before public perception shifts. You need to wait until everyone is in despair before investing.

jbob2000 7y ago

Dollar cost average is your best bet since things are uncertain right now and you, as a retail investor, don't have up-to-date information and can't act very quickly. Your best investments are things that people can't say "no" to; infrastructure and utilities. Banks, railways, power companies, mining companies, and shipping are all things that reasonably hold their value no matter the economic circumstances. You could take a gamble on a pharmaceutical outfit, but if these companies are chasing a corona virus vaccine, they will probably take on a lot of debt to achieve it, which may bite them later.

jstewartmobile 7y ago

the vulture approach to investing tends to be materially profitable yet karmically ruinous

pradn 7y ago
Another way to look at it is that you're optimistic that the crisis will be resolved.

rurp 7y ago

You're never going to get a useful answer to a question like this. If the market is efficient, which is a good default assumption, it's already factored in a weighted average of possible outcomes. Anybody who can reliably spot inefficiencies in the market is too busy making ridiculous amounts of money to respond on HN.

kpennell 7y ago

I'm only betting small amounts and money I could lose....but I bet a 6 month put option using robinhood app on SPY and VTI and it's ready made me a good chunk of cash.

sfj 7y ago

Just my opinion but I don't think it's a good time. Supply chain disruptions haven't turned into shortages, yet. The USA and other countries are with all certainty hiding the extent of the problem and the media is going along with it. There are going to be some more news bombshells before public perception shifts. You need to wait until everyone is in despair before investing.