A variety
of sources provide performance information on mutual funds. Most local
newspapers include recent total returns for hundreds, if not thousands,
of funds in their daily business sections. For more in-depth fund
performance information, check out financial newspapers such as the
Wall Street Journal. The Journal is also legendary for
its day-to-day reporting on issues affecting the markets and economy.
Other finance- or business-oriented publications such as Barron's,
Money, and BusinessWeek provide informative quarterly updates
on mutual fund performance.
Although it can be tempting to keep track of your investments on
a daily or monthly basis, paying such close attention to the short-term
performance of your funds can cause you to lose sight of your long-term
goals. It's all too easy to jump the gun and sell out of a temporarily
underperforming fund, only to see it rebound sharply not long after.
In a diversified portfolio, some funds will naturally do better
than others on a short-term basis. Investment experts generally
agree that the key to successful investing is to stay focused on
the long-term direction of your portfolio and not be swayed by short-term
trends.
A variety
of sources provide performance information on mutual funds. Most local
newspapers include recent total returns for hundreds, if not thousands,
of funds in their daily business sections. For more in-depth fund
performance information, check out financial newspapers such as the
Wall Street Journal. The Journal is also legendary for
its day-to-day reporting on issues affecting the markets and economy.
Other finance- or business-oriented publications such as Barron's,
Money, and BusinessWeek provide informative quarterly updates
on mutual fund performance.