If you are moved to take action that can make life better for someone in Ukraine — or for a relative or neighbor who has gotten bad news — by all means, do it.
Some perceptive readers have noted that I seem to be more worried than usual about the state of the world, and they say those concerns have been seeping into my columns on investing.
It’s a lesson taught by leading economists, including Richard H.
Professor Thaler, who was an author of the book “Nudge” and appeared as himself in the movie “The Big Short,” is one of the world’s great authorities on how humans behave when they make financial decisions.
If you don’t have a good plan, then build one dispassionately.
The news right now is worrisome.
First, put away enough money to take care of an emergency.
You may not hear about these from a bank or a brokerage: They can’t make money from the bonds, which the Treasury issues directly.
Russia’s invasion on Ukraine has had a ripple effect across the globe, adding to the stock market’s woes and spooking investors.
Europe gets nearly 40 percent of its natural gas from Russia, and it is likely to be walloped with higher heating bills.
Russia is the world’s largest supplier of wheat; together, it and Ukraine account for nearly a quarter of total global exports.
The price of palladium, used in automotive exhaust systems and mobile phones, has been soaring amid fears that Russia, the world’s largest exporter of the metal, could be cut off from global markets.
When you’re really ready to invest, use low-cost index funds as your core holdings.
I’m also following a recommendation that appeared in a Thaler column in 2011: doing whatever it takes to delay Social Security until I’m 70.
Beating the market consistently by picking individual stocks or bonds is rare, especially after fees.
From 1926 to 2020, for example, the worst year for the S&P 500 stock index was 1931, when it lost 43.1 percent; the best was 1982, when it gained 54.2 percent.
If the current stock downturn is already ruining your sleep, you may hold too much stock.