—two other bellwether indices— ended the day down 1.9% and 2.8%, respectively due to the uncertainty.
We’ve been the beneficiary of a booming job market. It's possible that a conflict could cool it off. CEOs and corporate executives abhor the unknown. They want clarity and certainty. Management doesn’t want to launch new ventures, build new facilities or hire more people if the economy falters or worse.
The fear of the unknown makes business executives hunker down, and wait things out until they get a sense of where everything is headed. If there is a real or even perceived fear of a war in Eastern Europe, along with high inflation and supply chain disruptions, it's logical that management will hold back on hiring. Human resources wouldn’t want to hire just to have to let people go if the economy starts sliding downwards in response to an armed conflict.
Employed job hunters may hit the brakes on their search. They’ll figure it's safer to stay where they are for now. If circumstances improve, they’ll feel that they can always restart their job search. Remembering what happened during the financial crisis in 2008, and during the dark early months of the pandemic, people won’t want to be the last one hired at the company and then become the first victim to be let go.
There is hope that the two sides could come to an amicable agreement without the need for war, violence, death and destruction. Until that happens, be prepared for some rocky times ahead.