How Do Market's Fluctuations Influence Retirement Patterns?

Stock market prices as measured by the S&P 500 reached an all-time peak on January 26. Less than two weeks after the peak, stock prices plunged more than 10 percent, erasing about $2.6 trillion of wealth. For purposes of comparison, the drop in stock market values represented a bit less than one-seventh of last year's GDP. It is natural to wonder about the impact of such a large wealth loss on the economy.