Why time in the market, not timing the market matters

History doesn't repeat itself but it often rhymes. Given the recent market correction, its easy to fall into the fools trap of selling during down cycles. Just as people think that markets will only get worse is when you will see some of the best days of return. Today was another example of that with the markets jumping upwards on postive news from the pause on tariffs.

Historically speaking, prior to today the best 1 days return of in all of the history of the S&P 500:

Rank	Date	Percentage Gain	Context
1	October 15, 1931	14.87%	Great Depression recovery rally after steep declines
2	October 6, 1931	12.34%	Another sharp rebound during the volatile Great Depression era
3	October 30, 1929	12.34%	Post-crash bounce after Black Tuesday (October 29, 1929)
4	March 24, 1931	11.73%	Early Depression-era volatility and recovery attempt
5	October 13, 2008	11.58%	Rebound during the 2008 Financial Crisis after coordinated rate cuts
6	October 28, 2008	10.79%	Late October rally in 2008 amid crisis stabilization efforts
7	March 23, 1931	10.47%	Continued volatility in the Great Depression
8	March 15, 1933	10.17%	Banking reforms and optimism following Roosevelt’s inauguration
9	November 14, 1929	9.96%	Recovery move after the initial 1929 crash
10	April 9, 2025	9.52%	Trump update on tariffs

Many investors will look at those figures and dream at the idea of getting those returns on a single day. For reference prior to today, the 10th best day was a relief rally after the Black Monday crash, driven by bargain hunting and market stabilization efforts returning in a postive 9.10%.

Anyone that says you can time the market are selling nonsense. It's not about timing the market but time in the market.

Lastly investors in the history of the S&P 500 have seen an average of 10% returns. Some decades better/worse however given the rarity of calling a market top/bottom, it's the longer term investor that tends to enjoy the best investment returns.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Cliff, Mario, Mark, or our TSG team.