Yahoo Finance

Wall Street is bracing for a bad start to the week, with investors fearing a repeat of the 1987 Black Monday that could make last week’s losses look too mild in comparison. Experts have warned of more bloodbath if President Donald Trump doesn’t take immediate action on his sweeping tariffs announced last week.

This came as the Asian markets tanked on Monday morning (Sunday night U.S. time), with Japan’s Nikkei tanking 8%, while Singapore and Hong Kong were down 8.5% and 10%, respectively. Investors are currently clueless about how markets will react in the coming days.

Given this situation, it would be wise to invest in safe-haven stocks like utilities. In this regard, Avista Corporation AVA, CMS Energy Corporation CMS, Exelon Corporation EXC and Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. SWX are lucrative buys. Each of these stocks carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The stocks are also from the low-beta category (beta greater than 0 but less than 1). Hence, the recommended approach is to invest in low-beta stocks with a high dividend yield and a favorable Zacks Rank.

Black Monday Back Again?

Experts believe that Monday could be the most brutal for Wall Street in decades. It could witness a potential repeat of 1987’s Black Monday when markets plunged 22.6% to record one of the worst days in financial history and be more dismal than the 2008 crash.

All three major indexes — Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq — are expected to open 6% lower on Monday, which could make last week’s $6.6 trillion wipeout look minuscule. Trump’s sweeping tariffs have wreaked havoc globally, and investors are scrambling for direction as trade partners of the United States gear up for retaliatory tariffs.

However, Trump said on Monday that he was not intentionally influencing a market selloff and would not make any deal with other countries till trade deficits are solved. He also said that more than 50 countries have already approached the White House to initiate trade talks and enter into negotiations.

However, markets are likely to suffer till they are assured that the new tariffs won’t impact the economy’s health and fears of it slipping into a recession ease.

4 Utility Stocks With Upside

Avista Corporation

Avista Corporation is an energy company involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy as well as other energy-related businesses. Avista Utilities is AVA’s operating division that provides electric service customers and natural gas customers. Avista’s  service territory covers eastern Washington, northern Idaho and parts of southern and eastern Oregon.