COVID-19 Response: No one should face financial hardship | Consumer Reports

A letter from Consumer Reports:

The United States is still in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, but Consumer Reports is already seeing deep economic impacts as people stay home and businesses close. 

Congress is working on legislation right now to address this crisis, but together we have to make sure our government’s response puts people — not corporations — first. It’s critical that our leaders protect public health and keep Americans financially safe.

Help Consumer Reports in this effort by signing our petition to Congress and the White House: No one should face financial hardship due to the coronavirus emergency!

Consumer Reports is working with lawmakers right now to ensure that all coronavirus-related legislation includes our core principles of fairness, safety and transparency for consumers. As government works to address the urgent problems facing our healthcare system and our economy, it must also focus on people and the hardships they are experiencing. We are calling on Congress to: 

  • Protect consumers from fraudulent and deceptive products, scams, price gouging, and predatory and abusive practices related to the outbreak.
  • Prevent surprise medical bills, including for COVID-19 treatment. No one should be penalized for getting needed care.
  • Provide people undergoing financial hardship temporary waivers for rent, mortgage, car, student loan and other debt payments during the crisis (without extra fees or interest), and a manageable path back to repayment.
  • Prohibit utilities and internet providers from cutting off service or charging late fees until a period of time after the emergency ends.
  • Stop credit agencies from reporting negative information during the crisis so consumers’ credit scores aren’t impacted.

Sign Consumer Reports petition to make sure the government response ensures that everyone — businesses and individuals — are protected from financial hardship during this crisis.

Help Consumer Reports show Congress that consumers want legislation that protects the public health and keeps Americans financially safe. Please add your name, then forward this email and share the petition on your social networks so we have a strong show of support. 

Thank you!

Anna Laitin
Consumer Reports

Sign the petition: COVID-19 Response: No one should face financial hardship

Market Timing

“The idea that a bell rings to signal when investors should get into or out of the market is simply not credible. After nearly 50 years in this business, I do not know of anybody who has done it successfully and consistently. I don’t even know anybody who knows anybody who has done it successfully and consistently.” Jack Bogle

During the 2008 financial crisis and economic uncertainty, global financial markets were melting down and Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection.  The resulting economic recession and global slowdown brought unemployment rates in the U.S. as high as 10 percent.  And, the U.S. stock market lost trillion of dollars in value as the S&P 500 experienced a single day drop of 90.17 points, nearly 9.04 percent.

Americans, and specifically American investors, believed inherently that the global economy and financial markets were collapsing.  Fear and panic selling took hold worldwide.  Both professional and retail investors started to sell and it didn’t matter what they sold.  Yet, Warren Buffett was buying stocks that were rapidly falling in price when everyone else was panic selling and sprinting to cash.

“I will tell you how to become rich. Close the doors. Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.” Warren Buffett

According to Buffett, “A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful,” he wrote in the NY Times.

Additionally, Buffett wrote in his 2018 shareholder letter.

“Seizing the opportunities when offered does not require great intelligence, a degree in economics or a familiarity with Wall Street jargon such as alpha and beta.  What investors then need instead is an ability to both disregard mob fears or enthusiasms and to focus on a few simple fundamentals. A willingness to look unimaginative for a sustained period — or even to look foolish — is also essential.”

There are several valuable lessons investors learned from the 2008 financial crisis that can be applied towards today pandemic driven crisis.  The lessons are based on the same principles that allowed Buffett to invest so effectively during the crisis. To sum them up:

  • Don’t panic and sell stocks simply because the market is crashing. When times get tough, Buffett is invariably a net buyer of stocks. For this reason, he keeps billions of dollars in cash on the sidelines — so he can take advantage during times of investors’ fear and panic selling.
  • Focus on best-in-breed companies trading at discounts. A great example was Buffett’s investment in Bank of America and Goldman-Sachs.
  • Don’t try to time the market. Just because the market has crashed doesn’t mean it can’t go down more. It certainly can. Instead of trying to invest at the absolute market bottom, focus on stocks you want to hold for the long term.
  • Understand that no stock or industry is completely immune. Back then, many investors had a disproportionate amount of their portfolio in financial stocks because they were thought to be safe.  Essentially, no stock or industry are safe.

Warren Buffett believes intrinsically that “it is a waste of time and hazardous to investment success trying to time the market”.  In a 1994 annual letter to shareholders, Buffett wrote:

“I never have an opinion about the market because it wouldn’t be any good and it might interfere with the opinions we have that are good.  If we’re right about a business, if we think a business is attractive, it would be very foolish for us to not take action on that because we thought something about what the market was going to do. … If you’re right about the businesses, you’ll end up doing fine.”


Bottom line: As long as investors keep a level head and maintain a long-term perspective as Buffett does, investors should come out of it just fine, if not stronger than they went in.


Sources:

  1. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/14/warren-buffetts-rule-for-investing-during-the-financial-crisis.html
  2. https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/09/23/10-years-later-warren-buffett-and-the-financial-cr.aspx
  3.  https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/08/warren-buffett-says-he-never-tries-to-time-stocks-i-never-have-an-opinion-about-the-market.html
  4. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/24/highlights-from-warren-buffetts-annual-letter.html

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public: Myth busters | World Health Organization (WHO)

COVID-19 virus can be transmitted in areas with hot and humid climates

From the evidence so far, the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted in ALL AREAS, including areas with hot and humid weather. Regardless of climate, adopt protective measures if you live in, or travel to an area reporting COVID-19.

The best way to protect yourself against COVID-19 is by frequently cleaning your hands. By doing this you eliminate viruses that may be on your hands and avoid infection that could occur by then touching your eyes, mouth, and nose.

Read more: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/myth-busters