Let me begin by acknowledging the Chinese New Year. You might ask yourself, "What does that have to do with the markets here in the US?" My answer to you would be everything. Remember how influenced we were with the slowdown in China last year? This slowdown could be exacerbated in 2016, putting even more pressure on our markets here.
2016 represents the year of the "Red Monkey" on the Chinese calendar and it does not auger well for stocks according to "The Business Times" of Singapore.
Here's what they say:
"Do not expect the Year of the Monkey to be easy for investments. You need to outsmart the monkey to do well in the lunar year 2016. Do expect world events impacting stock markets and investments to change sharply and quickly, like the agile monkey."
"Expect markets to be volatile in the first half of the year (we've already got that) and for events to unfold quickly," their Chinese astrology expert says.
"The Year of the Monkey is going to shake, rattle and roil financial markets. One has to be as intelligent, witty and nimble as the monkey to do well in such investment landscape," he writes.
The most-recent Monkey year was 2004. In that year, the Shanghai Composite climbed 36% only to come crashing down in a 44% correction that bottomed in June 2005 (and then rallied 500%).
MarketClub translation - be nimble in 2016. Continue reading "Is It A Monkey That's Going To Sink The Market?"
