If you are waiting to invest at the most beneficial time it is very easy to miss out on gains in the market. Just as the sharp falls in stockmarkets tend to be concentrated in short periods of time, the best gains are similarly concentrated. Because these gains often occur just before, or after, a market fall - an investor who tries to time investments is highly likely to miss the best gains. If you need to invest now and intend to stay invested over the long term the difference in gain between investing at a bad or good time is small. See Market volatility Guide.

Investors who for various reason need to invest sooner rather than later but are not prepared to invest when markets are  volatile can consider initially investing their capital in a low risk deposit fund out of which they can (drip) smaller amounts into stockmarket orientated funds when they feel the time is right to invest in the market. This method allows investors to invest in spite of market volatility and can be achieved by using an offshore investment bond. This method also may provide the benefits of cost averaging. See cost averaging Guide.