A view on the stock-markets

This is an extract from a recent statement by Anthony Bolton, Managing Director of Investments at Fidelity. Anthony is someone for whom I would have huge respect as he's a very successful, very experienced and very level-headed investor.

“In my three decades of stock-market investing, I have experienced many economic cycles and extraordinary events. The circumstances behind the current volatility might be unique, but investors’ reactions to them have many parallels to those I have witnessed in the past. The market falls around the middle of 2007 were clearly prompted by concerns over financial liquidity in credit markets. Six months on, the credit crunch is now taking its toll on growth in the broader economy, in Europe, the United States, Japan, and other parts of the world.

The actions of central banks may help to restore stability to stock markets, and I remain optimistic about the long-term prospects for equity investing. Investors should be prepared to ride out these fluctuations and take a longer-term view. Today’s volatility comes at the end of a bull run for world stock markets that has lasted much longer than the average. There is no reason to suggest that another bull run won’t follow at some point.”