The 1975-1976 Bull Market
In this series 100 years of Market Cycles, we will show investors over the coming issues all of the Bull Market and Bear Market cycles that occurred over the last hundred years.
In this months issue we look at the 1975-1976 bull market which was a short bull market and we look at the 1973-1974 bear market which preceded the 1975-1976 bull market. We also look at the 1970-1972 bull market.
By studying these market cycles investors gain an appreciation of how the stock market moves forward over time. These market cycles lead to good times that are followed by bad times and in turn these bad times are followed by good times. This cyclical nature is the driving force behind the stock market.
The S&P 500
The S&P 500 index was introduced to the stock market in 1957 as an index that was more representative of the U.S. economy than the popular Dow Industrial index. The S&P 500 index provided back tested data to 1925 based on the historical prices of the stocks that made up the index. This allowed investors to see how the new S&P 500 index compared to the Dow Industrial index. The back tested data prior to 1957 is still used nowadays for historical market cycle analysis.
The stock market is best viewed with a long-term perspective as this puts the stock markets current performance into the right context.
The following chart shows the 1975-1976 bull market on a 90-year chart of the S&P 500 (actual index performance since 1957 and back tested performance prior to 1957).
Chart 1. History of the S&P 500
Chart by stockcharts.com
The long-term quarterly bar chart shown above for the S&P 500 visually displays the stock markets behavior over the last 90 years. The 1975-1976 bull market is highlighted in green and the chart shows how this bull market cycle slots into the long-term picture.
The upward trending nature of the stock market can be readily observed with the S&P 500 broadly traveling upwards in a zig-zag like manner with frequent market corrections, numerous minor bear markets and the occasional severe bear market. These market corrections can last for many months and the bear markets can last for a year or two and sometimes three.
Bull markets and bear markets along with the less severe market corrections are a normal function of the stock market. To reassure investors, the long-term direction of the stock market is upwards inline with the general expansion of the economy over the long-term.
The 1975-1976 Bull Market in Detail
The 1975-1976 bull market can be viewed in more detail with a 20-year monthly bar chart as shown below.
Chart 2. S&P 500 Monthly Chart
Chart by stockcharts.com
The above chart shows how the 1975-1976 bull market started a multi-decade market advance.
The 1975-1976 bull market is shown again with a 5-year weekly bar chart which provides more detail on how the stock market moved through its bull market cycle.
Chart 3. S&P 500 Weekly Chart
Chart by stockcharts.com
The above weekly chart shows that the stock market does not go up in a straight smooth line but that the upward journey is actually quite a bumpy ride. This is normal market behavior and occurs all the time.
The 1975-1976 bull market (which started in September 1974) lasted for just over two years and the S&P 500 gained around 70%.This was a short bull market that was interrupted by the 1977 bear market.
The weekly chart is shown again as a line chart together with a 12-week moving average.
Chart 4. S&P 500 Highs and Lows
Chart by stockcharts.com
Previous bear markets can end suddenly and the next bull market begins. To help identify when a new bull market has begun, investors can use the principle of Relative Highs and Lows. The 12-week moving average aids in highlighting these Relative Highs and Lows.
From the above line-chart, the September 1974 RL (Relative Low) marks the start of the bull market. The bull market progresses as each consecutive RH (Relative High) is generally higher than the preceding RH. Similarly each RL is generally higher than the preceding RL. This higher RH and higher RL is typical bull market behavior.
The 1977 bear market followed the 1975-1976 bull market.
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