Investors are on pace for their worst year in history, declared strategists at one U.S. bank this past week. Their reasoning? Stocks and bonds are off to terrible starts, while consumer prices have roared. Extrapolate all of that bad news through to the end of the year—never mind that we’re barely halfway through spring—and diversified investors could lose nearly half their stash after inflation.
It’s possible, of course, but consider a less-dire view. Big stock downturns are normal. Since 1950, the S&P 500 index has fallen…