Exactly nine years ago on Friday March 6, 2009, the stock market fell to its lowest level of the recession.
Things looked gruesome. Business Insider pasted some of the awful headlines of the time. Click to see the entire image.
The S&P 500 lost more than 50% of its value during the Great Financial Crisis.
Stocks bottomed on March 6, 2009 and put in their lowest close three days later.
Reports Business Insider:
The sell-off prompted then newly elected President Barack Obama to make one of the greatest stock market calls of all-time. On March 3, 2009, Obama told America, “What you’re now seeing is profit-and-earnings ratios are starting to get to the point where buying stocks is a potentially good deal if you’ve got a long-term perspective on it.”
Since then, the S&P 500 has recovered all of its losses from the financial crisis, and then some. The nine-year rally is the second-longest bull market of all-time, and has tacked on as much as 331%, rallying to a record high of 2,872.87 on January 26, 2018. Today it’s 2,727.95.
You can read more Business Insider here and here.
The long-term chart of the S&P 500 looks like this. This is current as of this morning.
Are you the world’s great Polish comedian? Ask me, please.
Yes, I answer. Now ask me “What’s the secret of your success?
As you say the words, I interrupt you and say “timing.”
It’s funny in person. Not so funny in a written blog.
This morning, SQ, AMZN, CRM, AAPL, GOOGL and MSFT are on a tear, especially SQ.
Why SQ? Everyone and their uncle thinks someone will buy them for an outrageous amount of money.
How do I know SQ will keep rising?
In the last few days several brokers have called me with bated breath…. telling me I should buy SQ!!!
When I told one broker, I’d bought SQ initially at $14.37, he asked me “Do you have any other ideas?”
Life is wonderful.
Our movie critique’s best bet:
Dan Good, our movie guru, writes:
The Medici series is a rich and colorful tapestry of life in the 15th century filled with intrigue, retribution, ambition and love. Mid-century Florence and Rome are the perfect settings for the Medici banking family to display its power, wealth and ruthlessness. Almost sets the stage for Wall Street today.
Brilliant product
It’s a soft rubber pad for kneeling. My plumber turned up with one. He said it’s saved his aging knees.
To me, it was another testimony to having a vision, “What the world needs is a….” and then starting your own business.
Save your knees. Buy your own pad for $32.50 from here.
Useful stuff
+ Toto toilets are simply better.
+ AOL is a disaster. If you still have an AOL email address, switch over to Gmail, which actually works and is free.
+ WiFi Calling lets you call perfectly and clearly on your smartphone in your own house. Moreover, it’s free.
+ Leaving your house for a few days? Turn off your house’s water. You’ll be surprised how much damage a small leak over several days can cause — like $100,000 recently for a friend.
eBay warning. From a friend:
If you buy stuff on-line, check the seller out carefully.
I just spent $295 on a “pen*s enlarger.”
They sent me a magnifying glass.
The only instructions were “Do not use in direct sunlight.”
Harry Newton, who wishes everyone Happy March 9 Anniversary. Now, let’s go play tennis, or golf, or skiing, or walking…. Life is wonderful. Enjoy it.
Business Insider illustrated its Obama stockmarket call story with this wonderful photo:
