Today has been labelled “Black Monday” by some analysts, with more than £140billion wiped off the stock market value of UK companies in early trading.
Gary Neild, managing director of Blue Sky Financial Planning in Poole, said: “The spread of the coronavirus and the subsequent response by governments around the world, has led to an economic crisis and a significant drop in the value of company shares across the world.”
He advised investors not to panic. “If you don’t need the money, then sit tight, prices will bounce back, it’s just a question of when,” he said.
He said the crash could represent an opportunity for people with money to invest. “It would be prudent to invest money periodically into this market. In other words, drip feeding money makes sense and lowers your risk by buying at different prices, such as those who pay regularly into a company pension.
“Of course, portfolios have fallen but the impact has been tempered by diversification. The headlines around the FTSE 100 have been startling but it’s worth remembering that this index is skewed heavily in favour of oil stocks which have taken a battering.
“We may not have seen a virus like this before, but neither have we seen a response from governments like we have with the coronavirus. There are lots of lessons to be learnt but when this passes, the fit and healthy will flourish, both on a human and business perspective.”
