Wall Street is on the cusp of a bear market. Here's what that means for your money.
CBSN
The stock market's tumble this year has put the S&P 500 on the edge of what's known as a bear market — or when stocks decline at least 20% from their most recent high.
Stocks briefly entered a bear market Friday before paring losses shortly before the close of trading. Wall Street is grappling with the impact of rising interest rates, high inflation, the war in Ukraine and a slowdown in China's economy, prompting investors to reconsider the prices they're willing to pay for stocks.
Bear markets aren't uncommon, with the last one occurring just two years ago as the pandemic shuttered the U.S. economy. But this slump could mark the first downturn for younger investors who started trading on their phones during the pandemic, when stocks surged as the economy recovered its footing from the initial COVID-19 shutdown in 2020.
