To look or not to look. That’s the question when people consider checking the balances in their investment and retirement accounts. Maybe ignorance is bliss amid a volatile stock market’s recent sequence of selloffs.
The S&P 500
SPX,
+1.46%
entered a technical bear market on Monday. The 20% slip from an early January peak blotted out an estimated $9.3 trillion in market value among the companies comprising the benchmark. Those kinds of numbers can be hard on the eyes, not to mention the stomach. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 sank deeper into bear territory and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged Americans are becoming rattled by the flailing markets. On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve will announce its policy decision on the benchmark interest rate, and release updated economic forecasts at 2 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, a decision that will be closely watched by the markets. Powell will host a news conference at the Fed’s Washington headquarters at 2:30 p.m.
“‘When markets are volatile, it’s often hard for investors to look away, but staying the course when you have a plan in place is typically a good decision.’”
— Leanna Devinney, Fidelity Investments
These are all good events to follow. Knowledge is power, after all. But what about knowledge about how your portfolio is holding up? In a pullback, there’s bound to be inve …