The FTSE 100 is showing signs of life, but the big cap index is still about 7% (500 points) lower than it was three weeks ago. Judging from my Twitter feed, many investors have sold into this market wobble. Some are hoping for bargains, while others are fearing worse to come.
I thought I’d start this week’s piece with a brief look at how I approach selling in my portfolios, before going on to take a look at the (battered) state of my International SIF folio.
How I sell
As a general rule, I never sell during market wobbles. There are four reasons for this:
1. It’s too hard: I’ve learned over the years that I’m not particularly good at the kind of rapid, instinctive decisions needed to trade in and out of the market.
2. It’s too expensive: Trading stocks costs money. I’ve no desire to pay my brokers any more than necessary.
3. Lost dividends: A second consideration for me is that being out of the market means missing out on dividends, which form a big part of my personal investing strategy.
4. It’s against the rules: In recognition of my own strengths and weaknesses, I’ve developed two investing strategies. Neither of these require me…
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