A correction is a beautiful thing, simply the flip side of a rally, big or small. Theoretically, even technically I’m told, corrections adjust equity prices to their actual value or “support levels”. In reality, it’s much easier than that.

Prices go down because of speculator reactions to expectations of news, speculator reactions to actual news, and investor profit taking. The two former “becauses” are more potent than ever before because there is more self-directed money out there than ever before. And therein lies the core of correctional beauty!

Mutual Fund unit holders rarely take profits but often take losses. Additionally, the new breed of Index Fund Speculators over-react to news of any kind because that’s what speculators do. Thus, if this brief little hiccup becomes considerably more serious, new investment opportunities will be abundant!

Here’s a list of ten things to think about doing, or to avoid doing, during corrections of any magnitude:
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1. Your present Asset Allocation should be tuned in to your long-term goals and objectives. Resist the urge to decrease your Equity allocation because you expect a further fall in stock prices. That would be an attempt to time the market, which is (rather obviously) impossible. Asset Allocation decisions should have nothing to do with stock market expectations.

2. Take a look at the past. There has never been a correction that has not proven to be a buying opportunity, so start collecting a diverse group of high quality, dividend paying, NYSE companies as they move lower in price— Investment Grade Value Stocks. I start shopping at 20% below the 52-week high water mark— the bargain bins are filling.

3. Don’t hoard that “smart cash” you accumulated during the last rally, and don’t look back and get yourself agitated because you might buy some issues too soon. There are no crystal balls, and no place for hindsight in an investment strategy. Buying too soon, in the right portfolio percentage, is nearly as important to long-term investment success as selling too soon is during rallies.

4. Take a look at the future. Nope, you can’t tell when the rally will resume or how long it will last. If you are buying quality equities now (as you certainly could be) you will be able to love the rally even more than you did the last time— as you take yet another round of profits. Smiles broaden with each new realized gain, especially when most Wall Streeters are still just scratchin’ their heads.

5. As (or if) the correction continues, buy more slowly as opposed to more quickly, and establish new positions incompletely. Hope for a short and steep decline, but prepare for a long one. There’s more to Shop at The Gap than meets the eye, and if you are doing it properly, you’ll run out of cash well before the new rally begins.

6. Your understanding and use of the Smart Cash concept has proven the wisdom of The Investor’s Creed (look it up). You should be out of cash while the market is still correcting — it gets less scary each time. As long your cash flow continues unabated, the change in market value is merely a perceptual issue.

7. Note that your Working Capital is still growing, in spite of falling prices, and examine your holdings for opportunities to average down on cost per share or to increase yield (on fixed income securities). Examine both fundamentals and price, lean hard on your experience, and don’t force the issue.

8. Identify new buying opportunities using a consistent set of rules, rally or correction. That way you will always know which of the two you are dealing with in spite of what the Wall Street propaganda mill spits out. Focus on Investment Grade Value Stocks; it’s just easier, as well as being less risky, and better for your peace of mind. Just think where you would be today had you heeded this advice years ago —

9. Examine your portfolio’s performance: with your asset allocation and investment objectives clearly in focus; in terms of market and interest rate cycles as opposed to calendar Quarters (never do that) and Years; and only with the use of the Working Capital Model (look this up also), because it is based upon your personal asset allocation. Remember, there is really no single index number to use for comparison purposes with a properly designed portfolio.

If you are lucky, you’ll be able to invest in a Market Cycle Investment Management “Mirror Portfolio” — check with your financial advisor.

10. So long as everything is down, there is nothing to worry about. Downgraded (or simply lazy) portfolio holdings should not be discarded during general or group specific weakness. Unless of course, you don’t have the courage to get rid of them during rallies — also general or sector specifical (sic).

Corrections (of all types) will vary in depth and duration, and both characteristics are clearly visible only in institutional grade rear view mirrors. The short and deep ones are most lovable (kind of like men, I’m told); the long and slow ones are more difficult to deal with. Short ones (those that last a few days, weeks, or months) are nearly impossible to deal with using Mutual Funds.

So if you over think the environment or over cook the research, you’ll miss the party. Unlike many things in life, Stock Market realities need to be dealt with quickly, decisively, and with zero hindsight. Because amid all of the uncertainty, there is one indisputable fact that reads equally well in either market direction: there has never been a correction/rally that has not succumbed to the next rally/correction—

Think cycle instead of year. Smile more.

Author
Steve Selengut
and can be contacted on steves AT sancoservices DOT com

During every correction, I encourage investors to avoid the destructive inertia that results from trying to determine: how low can we go; how long will this last? Investors who add to their portfolios during downturns invariably experience higher market values during the next advance— particularly if they focus on Investment Grade Value Stocks (IGVS).

IGVS valuations have been trending upward for nearly a year; Market Cycle Investment Management portfolios are eclipsing the all time highs achieved in 2007, and income Closed End Fund values have risen with surprisingly high yields still intact. The investment gods are smiling once again— but not on everyone.

Corrections are as much a part of the normal market cycle as rallies, and they can be brought about by either bad news or good news. (Yes, that’s what I meant.) Investors always over-analyze when prices become weak and over-indulge when prices are high, thus perpetuating the “buy high, sell low” Wall Street lunacy.
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Waiting for the perfect moment to jump into a falling market is as foolish a strategy as taking losses on investment grade companies and holding cash. Corrections in both equity and income securities produce the same kind of hysteria as a spring sale at Macy’s— but in reverse. Waiting for the perfect moment to bail out of a rising market is as foolish a strategy as buying the most popular stocks at 52-week and/or all time highs.

The fundamental quality of securities does not change simply because their prices rise and fall in response to market conditions. The investment gods work in surprisingly un-mysterious ways, and they get pretty annoyed when you don’t pay attention to their teachings. When all value stocks are moving lower, it’s an opportunity, not a problem. When all IGVS stocks are moving higher, it’s also an opportunity— an opportunity to capture reasonable profits.

During every correction, I’m amazed at the shocked reaction of the Media, the confused explanations from market gurus, and the poor advice streaming from Wall Street. It’s no wonder that the average investor panics. If they could buy a new car, a new business suit, or a new house for half price, they would be ecstatic.

Only on Wall Street are lower prices villains and higher prices heroes. The Market Cycle Investment Management methodology understands the inevitability of both, anticipates cyclical changes, and takes advantage of market gyrations, big or small, and in either direction.

The equity securities in your portfolio are inventory, not fixtures. Inventory is best acquired at lower prices, marked-up a reasonable amount for quick sale, and replaced with new inventory— and repeat the exercise as often as possible.

The income securities in your portfolio are fixtures— and the highest quality ones last the longest and produce the best. Their purpose in your investment portfolio “business” is to generate the spending money needed for current expenses now, and living expenses later.

The calendar year has no particular investment relevance— and if we tried hard enough, we could possibly do something about a tax code that rewards unsuccessful investments more than it encourages profits. Investment performance analysis should be an objective based program monitor instead of 365-day horse race with irrelevant market indicators.

Rallies and corrections could be looked at like children— learn to love them equally and their parents (the investment gods) will reward you with stable long term market value growth within a balanced portfolio that produces annually increasing base income. (Can you tell me what that is?)

There is an investment mindset solution for the problems that most people have dealing with corrections, recessions, inflation and the Red Sox. Bad news creates opportunities; so does good news. We have allowed Wall Street and the media to turn the process of investing into an endless series of circus sideshows.

The direction of the market isn’t nearly as important as the actions we take in anticipation of the next directional change. Performance evaluation needs to be “rethunk” in terms of cycles. You need to overcome your obsession with calendar period market value analysis, and embrace a more manageable approach that centers on your portfolio’s unique business model.

The Market Cycle Investment Management methodology seems to get people to where they want to be less stressfully and more consistently than the more “conventional wisdom” based strategies— and, you do want to keep the investment gods happy by appreciating their market cycle children equally.

Steve Selengut

From the end of 1999 through the end of 2009, all of the popular Wall Street market performance measurement tools were in the red. The average bloodletting level of the DJIA, the S & P 500, and the NASDAQ was a disturbing-to-some minus nineteen percent.

Most of the investment community is either open-mouthed in shock or strident in blame about the somethings or someones who must be responsible for such horrific performance. Never again they swear to their clients— without ever a hint that they might themselves be the problem.

It won’t be long before the Wizards of Wall Street announce that they have studied the situation, and readied their sales minions to switch the shattered investment public into yet another fail proof (fool-magnet?) portfolio of hedges, gimmicks, signal responders, and panaceas for whatever the new decade brings.

Once again they will attempt to debug the market cycle and create an upward only future for the masses. Try not to be abused again— the markets aren’t broken, just the market shakers. Your portfolio should be up in market value— and not by just a little for the “dismal decade”.

These are the same geniuses that created the dotcom bubble by cramming valueless securities and speculative IPOs down your throats. They are the same charlatans who created the derivative markets and fraudulently hid their gaming devices in innocent looking rolls of tissue paper.

Wall Street thrives on the boom and bust scenario — because it doesn’t really matter to them how many of you win or lose. The evidence is clear; a boring-but-winning approach has been out there (and ignored) for three equally productive decades. The investment gods are outraged!

The past decade was a fabulous decade for old-fashioned value investors, particularly those with a reasonable selling discipline in their methodology!

It was a fabulous decade for those who understood that quality, diversification, and income generation are principles as opposed to media placating buzzwords.

It was a fabulous decade for those investors who were able to see over, beyond, and through artificial time constraints to find the long-term opportunities within every beautiful market cycle undulation. There were plenty of gyrations to gyrate to if you only knew how.

Investing is no longer a passive enterprise; and it never really was. If you can’t manage your portfolio throughout the market cycle, without succumbing either to greed, to panic, or to artificial and complicated hedging strategies, just stop. Right now. Listen and learn something old.

The only market cycle hedges needed are quality, diversification, and income— all classically defined. Throw in some disciplined selection and selling guidelines, a cost-based asset allocation formula, and a non-calendar year perspective and success will follow— cyclically.

You may miss a speculative spike or two (i.e., bubbles), but in the long run, Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) is a proven methodology for long run investment success.

You just can’t replace market cycle reality with calendar year gimmickry. Do better. Google investment grade value stock and request the ten-year MCIM numbers.

Change is good.

Steve Selengut

Actually, hindsight and the Investment Grade Value Stock Index (IGVSI) Bargain Level Monitor tell us that it died early in March 2009. More realistically, however, corrections don’t die quite so abruptly. They are supplanted by rallies— and vice versa.

The IGVSI Bargain Stock Monitor tracks the price movements of an elite group of New York Stock Exchange equities. Their “eliteness” is earned by a B+ or higher S & P rating, a history of profitability, and the fact that they pay dividends to their shareholders.

Unfortunately, they are the same companies whose boards of directors allow senior executives to pillage treasuries with obscene salaries and bonuses— and elite does not mean invulnerable to the whims of markets and governments.

But, for Working Capital Model (WCM) equity investments, they are just perfectly less risky (historically) than the others.

An IGVSI equity becomes a bargain stock (or “OK to add to your portfolio if it meets strict WCM diversification and price standards) when it falls at least 20% from its 52-week high. From 15% to 20% down, it is held in a mental “bull pen”, getting ready for the “bigs” after a few more down-tics.

The fewer IGV stocks at bargain prices, the stronger the market, and the more profit taking WCM methodology investors should be experiencing. The most important thing most investors fail to do during rallies is to prepare for their “supplantation” by the next correction.

Fewer equity bargains and higher prices should result in growing “smart cash” levels. Smart cash results from dividends, interest, profit taking, and systematic portfolio contributions.

Why smart cash? Its not reallocated to other classes of securities, it anticipates the next turn in the market cycle, and it patiently waits for new (and pre-defined) opportunities. Uh-uh, smart cash is never market-timing cash.

Here’s what the Bargain Level Monitor has been reporting:

* The 2007 monitor showed a decreasing number of bargains through May, followed by rapidly increasing numbers through year-end when nearly half the population was down 15% or more.

* The trend worsened in 2008, and at the February 2009 month-end bottom, a dartboard stock selection approach would probably have worked fairly well.

* Second Quarter numbers were the best in nearly two years— meaning there were far fewer investment opportunities to choose from. The Third Quarter figures surpassed them by 31%.

* September was the best rally month since early in 2007, with fewer than 8% of the entire IGVSI selection universe qualifying as “bargain stocks” by month end.

Here’s what the Bargain Level Monitor is telling you:

* The seven-month-old “fat lady” is signaling the death knell of the last stock market correction. WCM portfolios should be within striking distance of the all time market value highs achieved 28 months ago.

* We are absolutely in a potent rally, in both equities and closed end income funds. Profit-taking opportunities are staring you in the face, heckling, whispering to hold on for even greater returns.

* The last time we experienced six consecutive months with less than 20% of the IGVSI population down 20% or more from 52-week highs? Yup, the third quarter of a 2007.

So if you have not taken profits (and realized a few not quite as bad as they might have been losses in your major “thank you Mr. Congressman” disasters), one of these things is happening:

* You are being greedy by ignoring the WCM profit taking guidelines.

* You have no profits because you believed “the financial world is coming to an end thesis” and kept your stash in some form of mattress.

* You don’t want the tax burden associated with short-term gains or you think this new rally will actually last forever.

* You are waiting for the experts to pronounce that this upturn has become a new trend and that you may once again feel good about paying more for something than anyone else on the planet has ever paid— ever.

There is no question that we have experienced a powerful rally. The only unknown is its duration. So what do me do in rallies?

About the author:
Steve Selengut
sanserve (at) aol.com

September is fewer than three weeks away. Feeling nervous? Maybe you should be. For investors, the period between Labor Day and Halloween is proving an annual fright show. And no one knows why.

It was, of course, in September last year that Lehman collapsed and everything fell apart. But then it was also September-October 2002 that the last bear market plunged to its lows.

The 1998 financial crisis? It began late August, and rolled on for two months.

The famous crash of 1987 came in October. But most people have forgotten that the market actually started sliding downhill in late August.

That’s almost exactly what happened in 1929 too. The big crash came in October, but the market peaked just after Labor Day. Prices began falling through September, then tumbled further still.

The worst month of the Depression? September, 1931, when the Dow fell about 30 percent. It was also in September, 2000, that the bear market really got going.

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Investment markets got you down, Bunkie? Been blown away by derivative stun guns? When will portfolio market values move back to 2007 levels— and then what will you do about it?

It’s time to overthrow the evil Masters of the Universe and deactivate their weapons of financial destruction. Let’s outlaw the brainwashing that has changed how average investors look at and value their investment portfolios.

It’s time to exorcize the Wall Street demons and return to stocks and bonds— and to QDI, “the Force” for long-term investment portfolio security.

Speculating is complicated, even for financial rocket scientists. What most of us want (or would certainly settle for) is simplicity, stability, and reasonable growth in our productive working capital.

A return to plain vanilla investing strategies with operating procedures that minimize risk and encourage understanding of the financial markets needs to become part of our financial force field.

As bad as things have been since this black hole appeared, investment models true to fundamental concepts, simple strategies, and disciplined operating rules have probably bettered the market numbers in at least six important ways:

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One – Higher lows during market downturns: Equity portfolios managed using basic principles of quality, diversification, and income (the QDI) and disciplined profit taking rules should not fall as much in market value as most mutual funds or poorly diversified portfolios.

Constant cash flow, even if not reinvested, places a floor under market values, and investors feel better when their values fall less than the market averages. In soundly managed programs, buying activity slows as prices rise— increasing “smart cash” for buying at lower levels later.

Two – Moves to cash or other sectors before bubbles burst: Disciplined profit taking automatically moves dollars from overheated sectors to cash or undervalued sectors during rising markets. This process creates capital that can be used to lower the average cost of remaining positions or to take advantage of new opportunities.

Investors feel better when no profits have been left on the table.

Three – Maintenance of planned income streams during financial crises: Most financial plans focus so strongly on growing market values that they lose touch with the need for planning a dependable retirement income. They rely on selling equity fund units or inflated indices for cash flow, instead of generating stable income with less exciting cash producing staples.

Steadily increasing annual income can be placed on “cruise control” through the use of the cost basis asset allocation methods contained in the WCM (Working Capital Model). How many would-be retirees are searching for jobs because of improper income planning?

Four – Faster movement to new all time market value highs: When investors have a reasonable understanding of the various cycles impacting their investment portfolios, they develop valid expectations about the market value “performance” of their portfolios.

They are less likely to initiate knee-jerk or panic driven transactions and more likely to take advantage of the new opportunities that lower security prices always create. Additionally, higher quality securities invariably are in the first group to regain popularity with investors as good news reports begin to dominate.

Five – Steady growth in working capital in all market environments: Working capital is measured in terms of cost basis instead of market price. As a result, all income generated from interest, dividends, and realized gains grow working capital regardless of the direction of market prices.

A treasury bond generates the same income at $85 as at $115. Most closed-end municipal bond funds (CEFs) maintained their 5% to 7% tax-free cash flow throughout the financial crisis— in spite of their reduced market values. Similarly, short-term profits on high quality securities have been growing working capital since the current rally took hold in March.

Six – Annual growth in realized “base income” in standard portfolios: WCM portfolios are income machines by design. No security is ever purchased if it does not produce regular dividend or interest payments; at least 30% of all base income should be reallocated to income-objective securities.

Similarly, every dollar of capital gains income, and net portfolio additions are partially allocated to income producers— and the use of a cost based asset allocation formula insures annual income growth.

Few financial professionals begin their careers with any encouragement to become comfortable with individual equity securities and the surprisingly large variety of individual, relatively uncomplicated, and generally safe(r) income producers available for their clients.

Financial products are far more lucrative for their institutional employers and, as a result, the incentives for brokers and advisors to sell products is pretty much irresistible. Few pros can afford to be one with “The Force”.

The Dark Side of investing beckons like a Siren’s song, luring the majority of professional advisors away from the safety and simplicity of QDI. Institutional propaganda, projections, predictions, and hype have the same affect on unsuspecting boatloads of speculators who most often become shipwrecked on the derivative rocks.

Investors and their professionals need to re-evaluate their product orientation and plot a global escape from the Dark Side of investing.

Contact the “Skywalker” foundation for emotional and financial support while making the transition— and may the force be with you.

About the author:
Steve Selengut has been a Professional Investment Manager since 1979.
Author of: The Brainwashing of the American Investor: The Book that Wall Street Does Not Want YOU to Read, and A Millionaire’s Secret Investment Strategy.

I’m not a professional tennis player. I’m not even a tennis player. The last time I touched a tennis racket was 5 years ago. But I did read about how a professional tennis player aims to hit as many balls to the opponent to make him miss, in order to win. An amateur , on the other hand, aims to try to catch as many balls as possible, aiming not to make any mistakes till his opponent eventually makes a mistake and causes himself to lose. That’s defensive playing.

I’m not a professional stock investor either. I admit neither I have the time nor the patience to go through every financial report, visit the companies I’m interested in buying and whatever else it takes to be really confident enough to put a huge chunk of my hard-earned money into the stock. So I have to invest defensively. I aim to minimise my losses while riding the general upward trend of the stock market, rather than maximising my gains on the individual hot stocks. It may limit my gains a little, but in the event of a crash, I hope to come out relatively intact. I basically expect a crash, even in the longest bull run ever. It’s like having a Plan B even though you hope you never have to use it, or buying insurance though you don’t really want to die or get a critical illness just to make the most of it.

So how do I play my defensive game ? I protect myself the following ways.

1. I stick with what I know. It’s easier to figure out that maybe the market has over-reacted when you are familiar with the industry. For example, I bought Bank Of America at $4 and Citigroup at $1. The prices were crashing as people anticipated a further crash and that didn’t happen. Today they are holding at $13 and $3.5 respectively. Do the exact opposite of what the average investor is doing. I bought Merck when it was being sued for one of its drugs , Vioxx. The price crashed as people anticipated huge lawsuit payouts, which never happened.

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2. I buy stocks when the price is low. It works either when the market is down, or if the individual stock has fallen out of favour. If you buy when the market is down, it can only turn up. Of course, the risk is that you never know when it is going to turn up and you may be stuck with a low price for a long time. It really isn’t easy to time the market, but you can tell for example, if there has been an irrational selling off of stocks. That’s a good time to buy. The stock market has gone on sale. Stock up !

3. I try to buy stocks that are near their underlying values. I’m not very good at analysing companies, but I figure if the company has $X in cash per share, or $Y in assets that can be sold off should the company fold, and the price is within that range, it should be reasonably safe.

4. I like stocks with good dividend yields. That way, even if the stock price falls, eventually, the dividend payout becomes so good, people will start buying it again, so helping to support the stock price. Plus I figure, if the company can afford to give out dividends regularly every year, it can’t be doing too badly.

5. I have some of Warren Buffet’s stock. It doesn’t come cheap. But hey, if he can’t get his investments right, who can ?

Expectedly, after the resounding victory by the Congress Party in the general elections, markets skyrocketed as soon as the opening bell was sounded; eyeing a windfall in terms of government spending in a host of sectors to pump-prime the economy.

The sentiment was so strong in the trading community and the going was so good on the BSE Sensex that it reached the 17.24 per cent gain mark in no time, forcing the authorities to temporarily halt trading, when the circuit breaker* kicked in.

The same story repeated itself on the National Stock Exchange where the trading was also halted with the Nifty up by 17.33 per cent.

Within seconds of trading, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensex vaulted 2,110.79 points, or 17.3 percent, to 14,284.21, triggering the historic shutdown Monday. Infrastructure, banking and real estate companies led gains. Trade was forced to close for the day, after the Congress Party’s definitive victory in national elections set the scene for long-delayed economic reforms

“The big question – is it a game changer? Can India get back to the high growth, high valuation of recent years? This event probably does open up meaningful possibilities, but there’s a lot to do, and there could be a lot in the way,” she said in a report.

Trading has never before been halted due to an upward swing in stock prices, according to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

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The last time trading circuit breakers, which are designed to temper wild market movements, were triggered was January 22, 2008, when the Sensex plunged on fears of a U.S. recession.

Investors, many of whom had been sitting on cash, welcomed the end to uncertainty’ predicts a long bull run for the market.

“Compared to other emerging markets, we had underperformed by 25 to 30 percent because politics in India were unstable,” he said. “Now that there is no event risk and there is a strong government, we will catch up.”

Despite the high sprits, even within India there are headwinds to change. Congress is unlikely to curtail costly social welfare programs which have added to the budget deficit.

The global financial crisis has already slowed the pace of some reform, as Indian authorities look with fresh skepticism on the wisdom of U.S.-style markets and regulation.

The right time to get back in the market may be just around the corner. With global economies sinking, sometimes dramatically, it can be a scary thought to put your hard-earned money on the line. However, a smart investor will realize that golden opportunities are appearing if proper research is done.

If you look at a long-term chart of the Dow Jones average, you will see that it is currently at some of the 2002-2003 levels. It has dropped dramatically since the financial collapse of 2008-2009, but it is still in familiar territory. It may take another two years or more for a large upswing in the markets, but at least we hope that the Dow will not drop below 7,000 points. That may bring hope and some peace of mind about starting to invest again.

Dollar Cost Averaging

The concept of Dollar Cost Averaging comes to mind in the current market situation. It is the process of buying stocks or similar investments on a regular basis, such as once a month, using a fixed amount of money. When prices are low, you are able to buy more shares. When prices are high, you buy fewer. In this way, you are able to take advantage of temporary low prices. This is especially helpful for long-term investments, such as retirement accounts. It may go against human nature to buy stocks when everything is falling and red but in fact it can lead to a bigger payoff if done correctly.
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Don’t Wait Too Long

As soon as you believe the markets will not drop much more, that is the time to start investing. When an upswing begins, it may happen so fast that you will miss a good portion of it. There are literally billions of dollars of cash on the sidelines, just waiting to go back into the market when the time is right. You can imagine what impact that might have on prices because of a surging demand but limited supply of stocks and mutual funds. Don’t wait too long!

Which Companies to Buy

There are a lot of low-priced stocks right now. Don’t jump into any old stock just because the price is low. There may be good reasons for it, such as the company being dangerously close to bankruptcy. One popular example is GM. Their stock price has dropped incredibly far. Is it a good deal? The government will probably not allow them to go into bankruptcy because that could have catastrophic affects on the country. Even if they survive, though, they may not thrive, and the stock price might hold its value or drop even more. Nobody can predict the future of GM. This is just an example of how difficult it can be to make a trading decision at the present time.

You also need to consider how the company is adapting to the economy. Are they offering low-price items to their customers? Are they reducing expenses significantly, such as layoffs, to stay in business? Do they have access to enough credit to stay operational? These are very important questions to consider before making a trade.

Will the Economy Get Worse?

This is probably the single most important factor that traders are considering right now. Why put your money into investments if they are just going to drop again? The government is trying hard to stabilize the economy, but there are many experts who believe there is more doom and gloom in the future, with more foreclosures, bank failures, and lost jobs on the way. A lot of this depends on how the government handles the situation and how the public perceives their actions.

If the public believes things are stabilized, they will begin to spend and invest again, businesses will have more money and they can hire more people, and the economy can begin to thrive again. When this will happen, nobody knows for sure. Hopefully in 2009 it will, but it may be 2010 or later.

Every correction is the same, a normal downturn in one or more of the markets where we invest. There has never been a correction that has not proven to be an investment opportunity. You can be confident that governments around the world are not going to allow another Great Depression “on their watch”.

Every correction is different, the result of various economic and/or political circumstances that create the need for adjustments in the financial markets.

While everything is down in price, as it is now, there is actually less to worry about. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping.

In this case, an overheated real estate market, an overdose of financial bad judgment, and a damn the torpedoes stock market, propelled by demand for speculative derivative securities and Hedge Funds, finally came unglued.

But it is the reality of corrections that is one of the few certainties of the financial world, one that separates the men from the boys, if you will. If you fixate on your portfolio market value during a correction, you will just give yourself a headache, or worse.

Few of the fundamental qualities that made your IGVSI securities sound investments just two years ago have permanently disappeared. We’ll be using credit cards, driving cars and motorcycles, drinking beer, and buying clothes twenty years from now. Very few interest payments have been missed and surprisingly few dividends eliminated.

Only the prices have changed, to preserve the long-term reality of things—and in both of our markets.
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Corrections are beautiful things, but having two of them going on at the same time is like a trip to Fantasy Land. Theoretically, even technically I’m told, corrections adjust prices to their actual value or “support levels”. In reality, it’s much easier than that. Prices go down because of speculator reactions to expectations of news, speculator reactions to actual news, and investor profit taking.

The two “becauses” are more potent than ever because there is more self-directed money than ever. And therein lies the core of correctional beauty. Mutual Fund unit holders rarely take profits but rush to take losses. Additionally, the new breed of unregulated index-fund speculations is capable of producing a constant diet of volatility overload. New investment opportunities are everywhere.

Here’s a list of ten things to think about or to do during corrections:

1. Don’t beat yourself up by looking at your market value. You don’t live in a vacuum and you should expect lower valuations. That is why you should only buy the highest quality securities in the first place and stick with a well-defined asset allocation plan. Look for ways to add to your portfolios.

2. Take a look at the past. There has never been a correction that has not proven to be a buying opportunity, in spite of the media hype that this one is somehow special. When they are broad, long, and deep, the rally that follows is normally broad, long, and steep. Get ready to party.

3. The “Smart Cash” produced by interest and dividends should be placed in new stocks for rapid profitable turnover— don’t be shy when you’re looking at 50% discounts from recent highs. Buying too soon, in the right portfolio percentage, is nearly as important to long-term investment success as selling too soon is during rallies.

4. Take a look at the future. Nope, you can’t tell when the rally will come or how long it will last. If you are buying quality securities now, as you certainly should be, you will be able to love the rally even more than you did the last time— as you take yet another round of profits.

5. Buy more quickly in a prolonged correction, but establish new positions incompletely so that you can add to them safely later. There’s more to “Shop at the Gap” than meets the eye, and you should remain confidently fully-invested at least until the media starts whispering: “rally”.

6. Cash flow is king. Take smaller profits sooner than usual as long as there are abundant buying opportunities. Today, nearly sixty percent of all Investment Grade Value Stocks are down more than 25% from their 52-week highs. As long your cash flow continues unabated, change in market value is just a perceptual issue.

7. Note that your Working Capital is growing, in spite of fallen market prices, and examine your holdings for opportunities to average down and increase your yield on fixed income securities. Examine both fundamentals and price, lean hard on your experience, and don’t force the issue.

8. Identify new buying opportunities using a consistent set of rules, be it rally or correction. That way you will always know which of the two you are dealing with in spite of the Wall Street propaganda. Focus on Investment Grade Value Stocks; it’s easier, less risky, and better for your peace of mind.

9. Examine your portfolio’s performance in terms of market, interest rate, and economic cycles as opposed to calendar time intervals. Apply your asset allocation to your analysis for meaningful-to-you results.

10. So long as everything is down, there is little to worry about long term. Downgraded, or simply lazy, portfolio holdings should not be discarded during general or group specific weakness— unless you don’t have the courage to get rid of them during rallies.

Corrections of all types will vary in depth and duration, and both characteristics are clearly visible only in institutional-grade rear view mirrors. The short and deep ones are most lovable; the long and slow ones are more difficult to deal with.

Most corrections are relatively short and difficult to take advantage of with mutual funds. So if you over-think the environment or over-cook the research, you’ll miss the after-party. Unlike many things in life, Stock Market realities need to be dealt with quickly, decisively, and with zero hindsight.

Amid all of the uncertainty, there is one indisputable fact that reads equally well in either market direction: there has never been a correction-rally that has not succumbed to the next rally-correction.

About the author:
Steve Selengut has been a Professional Investment Manager since 1979.
Author of: The Brainwashing of the American Investor: The Book that Wall Street Does Not Want YOU to Read, and A Millionaire’s Secret Investment Strategy.