Trying times: Bulls, bears in search of balance

By By William F. West / community editor
July 7, 2002
A Jackson-based financial expert was candid in saying that these have been trying times for investors.
Wall's comments came in the aftermath of the collapse of WorldCom, allegations of improper business activities against Martha Stewart, the downfall of Enron and other business pressures.
Wall said that during the period from 1995-99 "when the Standard &Poor's 500 returned over 20 percent each year, we still had five, 10 percent declines during that same period."
Standard &Poor's, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies, issues a measurement of changes in stock market conditions based on the average performance of 500 widely held common stocks.
Wall said that every time the market drops, there are investors who panic and stray from their plan.
As another example, in October of 1998 there was a 15 percent decline in the market, but investors who did not panic had a 48 percent return from October of 1998 through August of 1999, he said.
The problem, he said, was investors had gotten too optimistic "and they had priced the stock market for perfect economy."
Wall recalled saying in 1998 and 1999 "that as long as the economy stays perfect, stocks are going to be OK, but we don't have any room for error."