Liquidate entire portfolio until virus is over?

Ceme3000

adonis10 said:

Ceme3000 said:

Reaper said:

Well my decision to buy earlier is looking embarrassingly premature. 

I'm glad I'm not the only one! The cheap shares I bought on Friday are now 32% cheaper today.  
I'm going to resist further 'bargains' for a bit! Lesson learned as they say. 

Another one here. Bought what I thought was a bargain, by yesterday they were down another 23%. Horrendous purchase, but I’m a newbie and learning.

Who did you buy?

Marstons    I mean with all the pubs probably about to close what could possibly go wrong!  
Oh well the dividend is good! Give it a couple of years and it could still prove to be a good purchase.

Ceme3000

adonis10 said:

Ceme3000 said:

Reaper said:

Well my decision to buy earlier is looking embarrassingly premature. 

I'm glad I'm not the only one! The cheap shares I bought on Friday are now 32% cheaper today.  
I'm going to resist further 'bargains' for a bit! Lesson learned as they say. 

Another one here. Bought what I thought was a bargain, by yesterday they were down another 23%. Horrendous purchase, but I’m a newbie and learning.

Who did you buy?

Marstons    I mean with all the pubs probably about to close what could possibly go wrong!  
Oh well the dividend is good! Give it a couple of years and it could still prove to be a good purchase.

bostonerimus

DairyQueen said:

bostonerimus said:

DairyQueen said:

The US has a major problem as its lack of (and botched) testing has been masking the infection rate in the US for some time. Worse still, they don't have socialised medicine so are reliant on individual health insurance to manage the risk and consequences. Many people have no health insurance. Testing kits have only just been made available but many insurers are refusing to pay for the test let alone the treatment. 

I much prefer a single payer health system and in particular the NHS model. The provision of healthcare in the US varies greatly between that states and the states are the ones actually dealing with the corona virus. I live in Massachusetts and here 98% of residents have health insurance and there is an extensive public health system. The state health commissioner has mandated that all insurance companies must pay for testing and treatment and the state will pay for the 2% without insurance. This could well all be paid for by the state as there are many illnesses that are treated free on public health grounds, things like TB get free treatment. There is a "state of emergency" with recommendations and most universities have closed early for spring break and will probably not open until April. Schools are out for two weeks. Professional sports are postponed, but everything else is going on much the same.

Few people are listening to Trump.

But MA is a Democrat heartland and a wealthy state. Isn't Elizabeth Warren your Senator? I doubt the majority in your fair state ever listened to Trump.

Not quite the same in the bible belt and other Trump-supporting regions. Have rust belt voters wisened-up yet? I doubt voters in (for example) MS are enjoying the same kind of health provision as those in wealthy MA.

Yes, that's why I pointed out at the top of my post that the States have a lot of responsibility for the coronavirus response and the organization of healthcare resources. It looks like the there will be money coming from the Federal Government to help pay for the issues caused by the virus response, but I'm glad I live in MA rather than MS as in MA there is world class health care across the state.

bostonerimus

adonis10 said:

Ceme3000 said:

Reaper said:

Well my decision to buy earlier is looking embarrassingly premature. 

I'm glad I'm not the only one! The cheap shares I bought on Friday are now 32% cheaper today.  
I'm going to resist further 'bargains' for a bit! Lesson learned as they say. 

Another one here. Bought what I thought was a bargain, by yesterday they were down another 23%. Horrendous purchase, but I’m a newbie and learning.

Who did you buy?

This Bear Market will be just like the others: some people will get the timing right and make some nice money; some will get it all wrong and lose a lot; and others will be in the middle. I fear that in trying to time the markets many people will get out too late and also get back in too late, or not at all after being burned. My approach is just keep my asset allocation within the bounds of my plan and to stay in the market. I'll take the paper losses and then the paper gains when things turn around.

bostonerimus

george4064 said:

I added new cash and invested that cash on 28th Feb, and same again on 9th March, all in equities and the REIT I hold. However (not really sure why) I decided to not top up any of my US equity holdings, thats a region I will include in my next top-up.

Obviously those purchases are showing a loss now, but I didn't invest all my cash sitting on the sidelines in one go. So I have more to invest before end of this tax year and can continue to drip feed through 2020/2021 allowance.

My Father started my ISA for me post 2008/09 GFC, so this is my first serious market movement down. I'm only 28 years old and this downturn coincides very nicely with my DC pension contributions which I have recently upped.

I considered taking some of my cash and buying US equities yesterday as the DOW lost 2000 points...it was tempting. But my cash is an emergency fund and ring fenced for spending, not investing. So I did nothing. I also looked at my asset allocation and it has moved from 78/22 to 73/27, but still isn't far enough from my 75/25 target for me to rebalance...80/20 or 70/30 would get me to rebalance.

Thrugelmir

quirkydeptless said:

Cash available to cover my needs for a recession/bear market of 3 years (I'm still working but contemplating early retirement within 5 years). 

Not a comparable situation as today but to put matters in context. From when the FTSE All Share Index peaked in December 1999. The very bottom of the trough was March 2003. A fall of 44.5% and a period of 40 months. Major events do have major impacts. 

EdGasketTheSecond

Some good bull traps today e.g. PSN and RDSB, strong rise to temp the buyers then ending up negative.

tropic_of_Username011

EdGasketTheSecond said:

Some good bull traps today e.g. PSN and RDSB, strong rise to temp the buyers then ending up negative.

Which is more important: being able to use terms like "bull trap" to mock some other group of investors (who may or may not exist, anyway), or having a sensible strategy for your own portfolio and sticking to it? Genuine question.

EdGasketTheSecond

Not mocking anyone; just stating facts. It's both good to know market terminology and having a strategy. Can never know enough.

PS. sorry if you got caught

tropic_of_Username011

I haven't bought or sold a single investment since 10 February. OTOH, my holdings include COST — have a look at the recent chart of that if you fancy a laugh