Stocks' January drop isn't welcome sign for 2009 (AP)

. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 8.57 percent for the month, its worst January ever and a worrisome sign for investors who see the first month as a trendsetter for the 11 that follow. They're believers in the January Barometer: As January goes, so goes the year.

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Since 1950, there have been only five times when January got it wrong in a big way. That gives it an accuracy ratio of 91.4 percent. Throw in the 10 years since then when the market hasn't moved much in a year, and January is still accurate 74.1 percent of the time, according to the "Stock Trader's Almanac," a book that tracks market trends. But after a horrendous 2008, some Wall Street veterans say 2009 isn't a time for looking at past trends.

Full Story: Stocks' January drop isn't welcome sign for 2009 (AP)