When Stock Markets Get Shaken, It Can Pay for Investors to Be Patient

Pedestrians mill about outside the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Friday, March 6, 2026. Seth Wenig/APNEW YORK—When stock markets are as manic as they’ve been recently, it’s natural to want to do something to protect your retirement savings. Historically, though, staying calm has usually been best.The U.S. stock market has a track record of recovering from every steep drop it’s taken. Whether it’s a global financial crisis, a trade war or a military war, the S&P 500 has so far always recouped its losses to push toward more records. Of course, that can take years, but anyone who moved their 401(k) investments out of stocks risked missing out on the recovery and further gains.