Many investors may feel uneasy over news that the US is currently in a bear market, but what exactly is a bear market? What does that mean for your goals and dreams? Is it a signal to sell or buy? The uncertainty and the weight of not knowing what to expect is very often too much for many investors to bear.

You’ve probably experienced that wave of relief before, when you manage to narrowly avoid a disaster. Now that the market is very choppy, it makes sense to take a step back, assess your investments and perhaps take some extra precautions — after all downturns are only a matter of time.

Volatility and downturns are part and parcel of investing, and it happens more often than you think. As long as you are holding a diversified global portfolio, staying put throughout the turbulence would have given you a long-term return over 7% in SGD terms.

Stocks are one of the few key asset classes that can help you beat inflation in the long run, but with the possibility of growth and returns, come risk and volatility. So, how much of your investments should you allocate to stocks?