US stocks plummet – is it time to buy bonds?

US stocks have taken a dive – should you keep your focus on US markets or turn your head to bonds?

New York Stock Exchange, Wall St, New York, USA
(Image credit: Matteo Colombo)

Stock portfolios are feeling the “autumn chill”, says The Economist. US markets spent the first half of 2024 in a “euphoric mood”, notching up weekly gains in 28 of the 37 weeks through mid-July for their “best streak in more than three decades”. Yet a series of sell-offs that began over the summer have made for a more cautious mood on Wall Street. 

The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite index dropped 5.8% last week for its worst weekly showing since 2022, while the S&P 500 finished down 4.3%. Disappointing manufacturing and jobs data triggered the latest bout of market shivers, says Kristina Hooper of Invesco. One survey showed US job openings in July were at their lowest level in three and a half years. 

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Markets editor

Alex is an investment writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2015. He has been the magazine’s markets editor since 2019. 

Alex has a passion for demystifying the often arcane world of finance for a general readership. While financial media tends to focus compulsively on the latest trend, the best opportunities can lie forgotten elsewhere. 

He is especially interested in European equities – where his fluent French helps him to cover the continent’s largest bourse – and emerging markets, where his experience living in Beijing, and conversational Chinese, prove useful. 

Hailing from Leeds, he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford. He also holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Manchester.