Devoted to understanding the basics and fundamentals of investing

Par for the course of late I guess, but these trading days are just getting more and more wild. Today the Dow was up over 190 points, only to sharply drop to below unchanged at about 3:25 pm. In the final 35 minutes the market again  soared, regaining most of its lost ground ending up 153 points. The NASDAQ had an even better day than the Dow on a percentage basis, increasing by 51 points, or 2%. The S&P 500 ended up 20 points, or 1.41%. Admittedly, I didn't see this big rally coming after the FOMC announcement from yesterday, but this sure is a strange and unpredictable market.

There was some speculation around trading desks that Goldman Sachs was going to make a troubling announcement tonight that spooked investors for a while. In the last 35 minutes it was again forgotten and the bulls charged into the close. Advancers led decliners 69% to 29% on the NYSE, and 67% to 31% on the NASDAQ. The volatility these days is extremely different from the pattern we have become accustomed to the past couple of years. It is important for investors to remember to not panic regardless of what swings the market makes in the next few weeks. I believe we will see more days like today, as well as more days like last Friday in the coming weeks. Get ready for some more wild trading days!