Slow to anger

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Not words that describe the behavior of the stock market

March 12, 2025

Before I came to work with the wonderful folks at ProsperityPub, I spent three years in a Presbyterian Seminary training to become a pastor.

(I promise this isn’t going to become a religious sermon, just bear with me a moment)

I loved my time there and would absolutely be a pastor right now if this path hadn’t found me first!

The reason I thought about it this morning, though, is because the market reminded me of a passage in the Old Testament.

Nine times in the OT, including in one of the most significant descriptions of God anywhere in the Bible, God is described as “slow to anger.”

The point of the verse isn’t to say that God never gets angry — whether you’re religious or not, you’re probably familiar with God getting angry quite a bit, especially in the Old Testament.

The point is to reassure the Israelites that they’re not dealing with a God who is ruled by emotions, or quick to change his mind or overreact.

I thought about that this morning because I couldn’t help but think how different that is from how the market behaves.

The markets are anything but “slow to anger.”

The markets are quick to: anger… frustration… fear… panic… terror…

But also, quick to: joy… relief… exuberance… greed… ecstasy…

The markets are prepared to turn on a dime at almost any second, they just need an excuse.

And they got one this morning with a much cooler-than-expected CPI print, suggesting that inflation is coming down more rapidly than anyone expected.

CPI dropped 0.2% from January numbers and rests at 2.8% — well above the lows of September at 2.4%, but putting to an end the steady rise ever since then.

And while it’s early (I’m writing this at 10:00 AM ET), the markets are taking this as a sign to hit the accelerator, at least for the moment.

The Nasdaq especially is soaring higher, with the Dow and S&P 500 fighting to get ahead.

Now, don’t hear what I’m not saying: I’m not saying that we’re out of bearish territory, or even that we’re gonna finish today way higher.

I’m writing to encourage you: remember that the markets are fickle. Because they’re ruled by emotion, they’re prone to quick and unexpected changes.

That is hard to navigate, sure, but it’s also a reminder that bad times never last forever.

Next week, we have a new Fed meeting, and while interest rates will probably remain unchanged, there’s plenty of room for Chairman Powell to say something that moves the markets in one direction or the other.

I’m working on getting some experts together to talk about it LIVE next Wednesday the 19th — Hit reply and let us know if you’d want to attend that session!

To your prosperity,

Stephen Ground

Editor-in-Chief, ProsperityPub

P.S. If the sudden bear market has you down, check out Geof Smith’s Bear Market Game Plan — where he uses one of the world’s most stable assets to target weekly income opportunities!