I read 1929 and my main takeaway was how unlikely it is for us to have a crash of that magnitude again. The differences between then and now are stark.
First, everybody was buying shares on margin. Everybody. Random lower class households were buyings shares on 10:1 margin. They had door-to-door salesmen pushing shares on uneducated households.
Second, nobody was talking about market cap. The whole world revolved around the share prices but nobody seemed to talk about what a company was worth.
Third, there was no SEC. There were no reporting requirements, no quarterly earnings calls. No rules of any kind.
Fourth, knowing prices was very hard. The current price of a stock was shown on physical signs that had to be updated and during heavy trading they were often many hours behind. Absolutely nobody knew what the price of various stocks was during the heat of the moment.
Fifth, the US economy is much more diversified than it was. Back in 1929 it was basically oil, rail, and banks. RCA was the Nvidia of its day.
We're in the middle of a correction now due to Iran, but I don't see a 1929-style crash happening.
First, everybody was buying shares on margin. Everybody. Random lower class households were buyings shares on 10:1 margin. They had door-to-door salesmen pushing shares on uneducated households.
Second, nobody was talking about market cap. The whole world revolved around the share prices but nobody seemed to talk about what a company was worth.
Third, there was no SEC. There were no reporting requirements, no quarterly earnings calls. No rules of any kind.
Fourth, knowing prices was very hard. The current price of a stock was shown on physical signs that had to be updated and during heavy trading they were often many hours behind. Absolutely nobody knew what the price of various stocks was during the heat of the moment.
Fifth, the US economy is much more diversified than it was. Back in 1929 it was basically oil, rail, and banks. RCA was the Nvidia of its day.
We're in the middle of a correction now due to Iran, but I don't see a 1929-style crash happening.