How to Protect Your Money as Stock Market Dives

CHARLOTTE, NC — Your money is still in jeopardy after wall Street took a dive again, this time in the final hours of trading.  We’re tracking what the slide means here in the Queen City, the country’s second largest financial district.  Plus: what’s causing it, and what you should do right now to protect your money.

A 442 point DOW rally vanished in the last hour and a half of trading Tuesday.  It’s a story you’ve probably been following and talking about for the last several days.  Wall Street is trying to rebound from six straight days of losses.  

The DOW ended up losing nearly 205 points for the day.  That’s following a huge surge after the opening bell. 

The NASDAQ fell about 20 points, while the S&P 500 dropped 25 points.  Just in the last six trading days, the DOW has lost nearly 1900 points, or about 11 percent.  The drop is being blamed on a slowdown in China.

So what does this mean for your investments?  Experts say the most important thing is not to panic.  The market has a tendency to fluctuate and correct itself.  For the most part, prices eventually rebound, though it may take time.

Next, sometimes the best time to buy is when the market is volatile.  You get the best buys when “doom and gloom” are present.

Finally, forget the day-to-day moves.  The first thing to check is how stocks are doing so far this year.

“That’s the lesson,” says Dr. John Connaughton of UNC Charlotte.  “Was 2008, 1987.  Whenever you see these big drops, if you don’t need the liquidity, and if you don’t need the cash now, and you just stick with it, in six months, a year or two, it’ll be back where it is.”