Historical or Hysterical?
Submitted by Atlas Indicators Investment Advisors on December 30th, 2018
Here we are on the last day of 2018, and it’s unclear to me how the year should be filed. It started off on a tear. Before reaching the end of January, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), a mathematical index comprised of just 30 publicly traded companies which cannot be invested in directly, reached a record level. Put it down in the history books.
Before the ink was dry the market began to lose its upward trajectory. For the first time in nearly two years the index moved into a correction (meaning it fell between 10 and 20 percent from its high). Hysteria was on the rise. Roughly two months later (around mid-March), after falling nearly 12 percent, it began recovering. The hysteria wasn’t gone as the index oscillated up and down throughout the spring and into early summer, all the while trying once again to make history.
Suddenly it found some support as buyers became the more urgent parties in stock transactions. While fall temperatures began to cool off, the DJIA started heating up. Once again, the ol’ history book was dusted off, and October 03, 2018 was marked as the newest and still standing all-time high for the popular index. Don’t look now, but a pattern is emerging.
With hardly any time to celebrate that newest milestone, hysteria overcame the market once again. Since then, the index’s volatility has been on the rise, and we find ourselves in the middle of another correction phase. On Christmas Eve, trading set a record for the worst down-draft ever seen for that day. But then, to our amazement, the DJIA recorded its biggest single jump ever; on the 26th of December it rose by more than 1,000 points. Open up the history book once again!
You might be wondering what’s next. Us too. Atlas will continue monitoring the market and economic indicators, looking for signs of history or hysteria. Our analysis on the developments can be found in your inbox each day the market is open and at any of our 10 Pie Parties we’ll have next year. In the meantime, please enjoy the waning hours of 2018. We wish you good health and prosperity in 2019 and want to express appreciation for allowing Atlas to work for you. Thank you.
