Coronavirus, Assam Tribunals, Global Recession: Your Monday Briefing

The problem is: It’s like if your neighbor’s house is burning down, but the fire hasn’t gotten to your house yet, it’s too late to buy insurance. It’s helpful to have an emergency fund, but trying to start one now may not be much help.

You’ve written in the past couple of months that despite the tumult in the stock market, most people should pretty much sit still. Is that still the case?

All the best economic science tells us that if — and it’s a big “if” — you’re willing to stay invested in stock for decades and decades, if you just sit still more or less, keep putting money in at regular intervals, and sell some stock when stock prices get too high and buy some stock when the prices fall, you will do better and earn more than most professional brokers.

Now, that’s a science-based answer — it’s not quite a behavioral-science-based answer. I recognize that there are people who have never been psychologically tested in this way before.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Melina

Thank you
To Melissa Clark for the recipe, and to Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the rest of the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is a bit of relief: an excerpt from a new Times audio series called “Sugar Calling,” hosted by the best-selling author Cheryl Strayed, in which she chats with her mentor and friend, the author George Saunders.
• Here’s our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Killer of the Night King on “Game of Thrones” (four letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• Times journalists were honored by the Overseas Press Club with awards in five categories and one citation, leading our honored competitors for a second straight year.