You talk to your colleague about one of your stock positions and knock on wood while doing so? If you see a black cat on your way to work, you refrain from placing any stock orders that day, just to be safe; and certainly not on a Friday the 13th? After all, the great stock market crash on October 24, 1929, is known as "Black Friday." It triggered the "Great Depression" and the global economic crisis.
If you avoid certain days of the week, numbers, or colors, you might be a little superstitious. Secretly, superstitious people hope to influence their (stock market) fate with corresponding actions. Although we know that there are no supernatural forces that can be activated with a saying to ward off bad luck or bring good luck, superstitious beliefs or sayings are somehow deeply rooted.
65% of women and 48% of men are superstitious
A survey by LOTTO24 of more than 1,000 people shows that many are still superstitious today. Nearly 65% of the women surveyed admit to it, and only 48% of men. They believe in four-leaf clovers, lucky days, and the like. The survey took place from April 16, 2024, to April 23, 2024.
People from southern Germany are the most superstitious. According to the LOTTO24 survey, 62% are superstitious here. In second place are the western German states, where 58% say they are superstitious. Third place goes to northern Germany, where 56% have outed themselves as superstitious. People in the east of the country believe the least in supernatural forces; there, it is only 50%, which still seems relatively high in our enlightened world.
Birthdays as popular lucky numbers on lottery tickets
No surprise: lottery players are more superstitious than non-players. The survey results show that 62% of players describe themselves as somewhat to very superstitious. Among non-players, it is only 53%. With a winning probability (6 correct numbers with a super number) of 1 in 140 million, one probably needs a bit of superstition to play at all; from a rational point of view, one would consider the chance too small and refrain from playing.
For many lottery players, superstition starts with the selection of numbers: 52.2% rely on tried and tested lucky numbers for the hoped-for winning ticket. Most commonly, these are birthdays (53.4%), favorite numbers (34.4%), once randomly chosen numbers (30.9%), the child's birthday (23.7%), or the wedding anniversary (13%). Many stock market participants might be reminded of choosing their PIN here.
A certain superstition persists among both lottery players and non-players. Regardless of the hope for the jackpot, broken mirrors (46.7%), black cats (38.2%), and Friday the 13th (34.4%) are highly suspect to Germans.
Well then, good luck with your next stock transactions – how about doing them today, on this Monday?!
Anke Dembowski is a financial journalist and author of various investment fund-related and other financial books. She is also a co-founder of the "Fondsfrauen" network.