The VIX shoots up – fear rules the stock exchange (Photo: Freepik, Artbot)
The markets stagger, investors tremble-and the fear-and-greed index scratches the zero line. It is the fabric from which crash stories are knitted. But is that already the floor or only the beginning of the end? A look back into the story and forward into the abdominal cavity of the stock exchange.
Thursday, the investors turned the stomach
Last Thursday, many investors only wanted one thing: that finally was over. End with the trade war screams, end with the number blood bath. But the market didn’t even think about getting into reason. On Friday, the sale continued – mercilessly, deep red, without mercy. And Monday also left no doubt that it was not a little wobble. It is a tangible shock, triggered by Trump’s customs club that pressed the S&P 500 into a rapid correction. Since the February high, the US exchanges have lost double digits-a repricing, fast, brutal, without double soil.
When the VIX roars – and the Fear & Greed Index trembles
VIX Index Stand: 07.04.2025 / Source Google Finance
Hardly anyone pays attention to him in good times. But in moments like this, the VIX, the well -known barometer for market uncertainty, becomes an apocalyptic siren. The index, which measures the expected fluctuation width of the S&P 500, sneaks harmlessly in the range between 10 and 15 – a real snoring barometer. But woe when the storm breaks off: then it mutates into a fear detector, and the numbers explode like a seismograph at earthquake 8.
The VIX is currently climbing into those toxic zones in which investors drive nervously out of the skin. Values beyond the 30 show that tremors started. From 35 or even 40 it gets ugly: then the large screeching dominates, the fingers are nervous on the sales button – and the herd races towards the exit. Exactly the moment when courageous investors start to get the shopping list out.
Because that’s the irony on the stock exchange: the greatest fear is often the best friend of the long -term investor. Anyone who buys when others tumble with panic does not rely on hope – but on statistics. Historically, extreme values were reliable in the VIX. Not always precisely, but often surprisingly profitable. And as if that weren’t enough, the Fear & Greed Index from CNN Money finally pushes the mood into the basement: a value of 4 out of 100 – it could hardly be more extreme.
Fear and Greed Index / Stand: April 7, 2025
Source: CNN Money
Of course: Nobody wants to be the fool who reaches into the falling knife. But if you wait too long until the lake has calmed down, you stand on the shore – and see the course ship without taking it off. The trick: buy when it hurts. Sell if it feels easy. Sounds simple, it is never.
History repeats itself – sometimes cruel way
A small view of the dark chapters of the stock exchange history: From 1929 to 1932 the market lost 85 percent – in stages, with shock absorbers and even deeper lows. The 70s were a decade of suffering, shaped by stagflation, oil shock and economic frustration. The financial crisis 2007 to 2009? First hope, then the big end – minus 60 percent. Again and again the same dramaturgy: if you think it is over, it will be really bad.
Only 2020 was different. Then the crash came like a flash – and the recovery was just as quick. Why? Because the central banks got the bazooka out and the states distributed money like confetti. But this time there may be no party. Inflation eats up the policy of open money locks, and the central banks are paralyzed between fear of interest and the economic crisis.
Welcome to the double crisis: Tech meets trade was
Technology like 2000? Commercial crisis like in the 70s? The answer is: a bit of both. Although today’s tech giants write solid profits-unlike back then-the ratings remain sporty, and the risk of new regulations is real. Added to this is the fear of a trade war 2.0, in which Europe, Asia and the United States knock each other around their ears as if there was no tomorrow. The result: even solid stocks are torn down. European titles are now under pressure. The markets no longer just praise uncertainty – they smell stagflation.
Trump under pressure: Sturm of reality meets political calculation!
The US shares stutter, which threatens inflation like a hot air balloon without a stop, and the intermediate elections could hold the mirror of an uncomfortable reality.
But the real spectacle takes place somewhere else: the billionaire cohorts from Gates to Musk see their fortune burning in the fireworks of volatility. Even the thickest bunkers do not offer protection if the market blows the stress test. Irony of fate: Of all things, the titans of capital must now watch helplessly how their billions melt in the glass house of the markets.
Question to Wall Street: How long until the pressure of the numbers is greater than loyalty to protectionist populism? If the stock exchanges like time bombs tick and the alliances crumble, there is only one teaching of the economy: Even the most powerful president cannot override the gravity of the markets.
Warren Buffett’s tip when everything falls
Anyone who gets snapshot when looking into the depot may have too many shares. The next technical counter -movement can be an opportunity to reduce the risk and put your portfolio on a broader basis. But please do not panicked at deep stalls – that would be procedural and therefore fatal. The key lies in serenity. Or as Warren Buffett says: “When it rains gold, hold the bucket out – not the foxglove.”
If you are liquid, you should now observe, don’t run away. Because when fear is greatest, bargains are most numerous. Timing remains difficult, but discipline beats hectic.
7 strategies for stock exchanges with bellyache
- Cash is sexy again: In the stagflation, everything is shredded – stocks, bonds, even gold. Liquidity is king, but please not forever – inflation is already waiting.
- Bye-bye uncle sam: Two thirds of the world exchanges consist of US shares-pure clump risk. Time for a healthy geographical diet.
- Locally instead of global: If you act regardless of global supply chains, you have advantages. Supersurger, Telekom, banks – the new is stable.
- Asia remains a mandatory: China, India, Asean – global growth does not take place on Wall Street.
- Quality to the discount: If you buy now, you get top values for a sale price. But: please with analysis, not with hope.
- Timing kills: If you try to get the perfect start, you usually miss it. Better: spread wide and stay invested.
- Gold shines in the shade: When politics, tariffs and crises romp, the precious metal remains a proven protection.
Conclusion: The pain is part of it – but also the chance
Bear markets feel cruel. They are tough, lengthy and destroy illusions. But they also offer opportunities. Those who do not let themselves go by fear, but stay rationally, can end up in the end. The stock exchange is not a pony farm – but also not a cemetery.
Disclaimer:
No investment advice. No call to buy or sell securities.