SAN ANTONIO – Investors saw some light at the end of the long, dark tunnel Monday, rallying the stock market on news that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine appears to be highly effective.
Pfizer says COVID-19 vaccine is looking 90% effective
The Dow Jones Industrial Average stock market index road a roller coaster on Monday, rocketing 1,600 points mid-day, only to come back down to an 834-point rise for the day. At one point, it flirted with busting through the 30,000 mark.
“We can see with this new Pfizer drug we can get out of this,” said Rudy Torres, CEO of Torres Financial Services.
Airlines, cruise lines, oil, and retail shopping industries saw a surge of buyers with the prospect that people will be able to travel and resume some normalcy. That’s still likely months away as it’s unclear yet when a COVID-19 vaccine will be available to the general public.
For now, investors and 401Ks will likely see continued volatility, according to financial advisor Dionelle Rucker.
“If the cases continue to spike, how is Joe Biden going to handle that? And, the stimulus package -- what’s going to happen with that?” Rucker questioned. "That’s going to affect the stock market.
The markets like clarity. It’s something the election provided in some measure.
“Now that we know Joe Biden is in. We know what policies and what things he’s going to support,” Torres said. “We can make money in the market. We just need to know where to place the investments.”
Nearly one-third of Americans have a 401k retirement account. While people close to retirement will likely not want to take on too much risk, Torres' advice for the average investor is to stay the steady course.
“All the experts agree -- you cannot time the market,” he said. “So periodic investing over the long-term and being patient with a diversified portfolio is the way to go.”