I would not say worst or scariest market, but a little bit different. Actually I remember 2001 and 2002 had days as crazy like right now and last 2-3 weeks. I remember sending ES orders then and executed instantly but up to 2 or 3 points away where bid/ask was at the time I clicked. The reason was not delayed quotes, but bid asks jumping like crazy, as I did some studies and experiments to confirm that my broker was not screwing me. Right now I have much better executions, but the moves are relentless. These days it's like the whole day is a payroll or fed rate announcement. Quite fast and relentless market and it doesnt ever stop. Three weeks ago and before it s been pretty mild IMHO not like a true bear market. THIS is a bear market.
It's actually very dumbfounding to listen to market commentators reporting "strong volatility and markets down - but we never know what will happen, and maybe it will turn around before the end of the day" ... and then smile with a silly smile amongst the turmoil. That folly never ceases to surprise me... USD 2 trillion lost in 5 days. That sounds like a pretty good basis for optimism. NOT... The bottom is nowhere near anytime soon - those listening to these optimists will be the one paying the tabs...
Well... for what is worth, we still do not have a new President in place, with a new economic plan that may indicate new leadership in stocks. Does anyone here think that we will not have a market rally until a few weeks after the election, even if credit markets get fixed? Looks like markets want Bernanke, Paulson and Bush out!
Permageriatric dinosaurs will never be profitable - they just act on the extremes and are prone to self-destruction.
Seems the US treasury announcing USD 40bn debt selling has an impact on "psychology" - or maybe the "brain"... 10-yr and 30-yr yields are up, but this is just the start of the bailout financing...