Equity markets go up and they go down — it is part and parcel of economic cycles, though volatility is usually higher in the short term. While one would attempt to buy low and sell high, the reality is that few, if any, are successful on a consistent basis. More often than not, investors would chase a rally on the fear of missing out (FOMO), sell in a panic when stock prices unexpectedly fall and stay on the sidelines for too long and miss out on the subsequent recovery. The point is that short-term stock price movements are highly unpredictable, and this is why we say timing the market is rarely a worthwhile endeavour.
Stay in the market. Over the long term, equity markets generally go up as the domestic and global economy grows (see Chart 1). Obviously, however, the total returns for each market will vary in degrees, owing to differences in economic, political and institutional dynamics. Some equity markets will perform better than others. In other words, the absolute return on your portfolio is dependent on two main factors — the time in market (the compounding effect) and choice of investments, that is, which markets to invest in.
