Did you know: that based on historical data, if you held a portfolio of stocks and shares for one year, there is a 68% chance of making money? But, if you held them for 20 years, you increase your chances to 100%.

There has never been a 20 year period in post-war history in which a typical portfolio of stocks and shares has not risen in value.

In fact, even in the last 20 years – which include both the 2008 crash, when the stock market fell by 44.8% in one year, and the Covid pandemic – the FTSE 100 has almost doubled in value.  And that is just the capital value; it doesn’t include any dividends which would have been payable during that period.

This is because time evens out market volatility, as you buy shares at various prices, averaging out your cost.  It can also benefit you through the effect of compounding, in which gains made within the portfolio go on to make further gains of their own.  Drip-feeding investment into a stocks and shares portfolio will ensure you get the benefits of buying into markets when they are low as well.

This is the performance of the FTSE 100 in the period 2003-2023:

Please note that past performance is not a guide to the future. This example only quotes the FTSE 100 and a global portfolio will have provided different returns.

There is a world of difference between timing the market and time in the market.  Trying to second guess the market is for experts only, but anyone can gain if they are prepared to play the long game.