Markets take a beating
Posted Mar 10, 2011 11:39 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
North American markets opened trading to a beating with both the TSX and the DOW reporting triple digit losses.
ATB Senior Economist Todd Hirsch tells 660News the exact reason why it may be difficult to pinpoint.
Hirsch says we may be seeing some pullback in the market after it’s recent good run or it may be “investor fear” over the volatile situation in the Middle East.
“I’d say it’s a combination of both,” says Hirsch. “The geo-political situation, the fear factor and just the sense that the markets may have gotten a little too far ahead of themselves.”
Ongoing tensions he says overseas and in the Middle East, can have huge implications here at home.
He says Alberta will benefit from the price of oil, if it continues to rise.
“The bigger threat to the situation is, will these oil prices push the U.S. back into recession or will we see even more geo-political tension or possible outbreaks of war,” Hirsch explains. “There’s all sorts of possibilities that can play out.”
Investors, he says, do not like uncertainty.
However it’s unclear he adds what may happen tomorrow.
“If the down turn gains momentum, we could start to see a bit of “herd-like” mentality that drops that market another 1,000 points,” he says. “Barring that sort of situation though I don’t really see a repeat of what we saw in 2008.”
Without the credit crisis, Hirsch says he doesn’t foresee any massive market drops.
