War is rattling global markets and your savings are at risk — here's what Suze Orman says you should do right now

In a video posted to YouTube in late March 2026, with the Iran war entering its fifth week and global markets in disarray, Orman sat down with Fitz-Gerald — a private investor, analyst and market researcher with more than three decades of experience — to cut through the noise (2). Nearly two months later, their advice looks prescient.

“Everything now is dependent on one thing and one thing only,” she told Fitz-Gerald. “And that is oil, in my opinion.”

At the time, it was hard to argue with her logic. Wall Street had just finished its fifth-straight week of losses — with the S&P 500 falling to 8.7% below its all-time high set in January 2026 — amid fears that surging oil prices would trigger inflationary waves throughout the global economy (3). Here in Canada, the S&P/TSX Composite Index was also down since the hostilities began on February 28, 2026, according to The Canadian Press (4). Those fears proved well-founded: WTI crude has surged more than 50% since the war began — from around $62 a barrel in January to over $106 in early May — and U.S. consumer prices jumped 3.8% year-over-year in April, the biggest increase in three years.

Since then, the recovery has been far more dramatic than anyone expected. The S&P 500 advanced 9% in April alone — its strongest monthly performance since 2020 — and closed above 7,200 for the first time ever on April 29. But the rally hasn't been a straight line: on May 3, WTI crude spiked 4.4% to $106.42 a barrel after a UAE missile interception reignited war fears, dragging both American and Canadian stock prices lower once again. By mid-May, however, the S&P 500 had pushed through to a new all-time high of 7,408 (5).

If anything, these events confirm Orman's statements from late March, making them look prophetic. "Now we're watching oil go up and up and up and sometimes it comes back down. And when it comes back down, that's when we see the markets go up," she said in the March video. By mid-April, she was even more direct, telling listeners that "the S&P 500 is now tracking oil prices almost tick-for-tick" due to the conflict and urging investors to resist the urge to panic-sell.

This volatile dance between two unruly partners — oil prices as the lead, with stocks following — shows no sign of ending. On May 11, U.S. President Donald Trump rejected a peace proposal from Tehran (6) and declared that the ceasefire is "on massive life support." As CFRA chief investment strategist Sam Stovall cautioned, "before a continuation of the current bull market run, the S&P 500 may need to take some time to catch its breath."

Still, Orman and Fitz-Gerald's perspective on how everyday investors can navigate this uncertainty remains as relevant as ever — regardless of what geopolitical unrest may be testing investor confidence.Here’s a closer look at the advice they gave to their listeners — and how Canadians can benefit from it.

What investors can do to start right now

Orman started out by reminding listeners that stock fundamentals, including earnings and profitability, had been solid right up until the war began, and that peaks and valleys are part of the natural course of stock market performance.

In other words, these swings shouldn’t thwart the compounding power of staying invested, even if the going gets tough temporarily. For Canadians, this advice applies whether they’re holding a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA), a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) or a non-registered brokerage account.

And for Canadians who are particularly adverse to risk, a good start could be to open a TFSA or RRSP high-interest savings account, which combines above-average interest rates with the normal tax advantages of making contributions to a TFSA or RRSP.

In 2026, these kinds of accounts are becoming more affordable than ever, as competition between banks drives fees lower. For instance, it’s now possible to secure an RRSP high-interest savings account with no fees through institutions like EQ Bank. With the EQ Bank RRSP Savings Account, not only do you get to avoid monthly fees and minimum balance requirements, but you also get an annual interest rate of 1.5%, so you can maximize that tax-deferred growth on your savings.

Plus, for a limited time, get up to $200 cash when you add new deposits to your EQ Bank RRSP Savings Account.

Don’t panic: Stay with your investments for the long term

If you watch your portfolio daily and react in panic to every headline by selling or moving to cash, you won’t see the long-term benefits.

Both Orman and Fitz-Gerald agree that when the market stabilizes, we’ll see it skyrocket again. Fitz-Gerald even warns that “everybody who thinks they’re being smart by stepping out right now is going to get left behind (1).”

For Canadian investors, history backs this up. The S&P/TSX Composite Index surged 833 points — its biggest single-session rally in nearly a year — on March 31, 2026, when fresh optimism about a potential end to the Iran war swept through Bay Street (6).

Investors who had exited the week prior missed every point of that gain.

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Choose stable stocks

When Orman asked Fitz-Gerald what to do if your tech holdings are sinking, his answer wasn’t to sell — it was to rebalance with something steadier.

“If you’re freaked out because all of your tech has gone in one direction, you can balance that like a little kid’s teeter-totter on the playground with a stable stock like Chevron,” he said. Fitz-Gerald noted that it offers reliable dividends and has remained stable over time.

For Canadian investors, the TSX offers strong domestic equivalents. Suncor Energy (TSX:SU) and Canadian Natural Resources (TSX:CNQ) are the two most widely cited names for investors seeking oil-sector stability and income.

According to The Motley Fool Canada, both companies offer long-life, low-decline oil sands assets, strong cash flow and dependable dividends — meaning they generate returns regardless of how the broader market is performing (7).

In fact, CNQ raised its dividend for the 26th consecutive year in early 2026, with a yield of approximately 4%. Suncor runs the full pipeline — from its oil sands production, refining and Petro-Canada stations — and it pays a quarterly dividend yield over 3%. It’s also been steadily raising that annual dividend year after year (8).

The point of a stable stock is to keep your portfolio steady when the market gets bumpy. But it’s not always easy to tell between a stable, blue chip stock that will ride out stormy markets and a high-risk asset that could sink beneath the waves when things get choppy.

One way around this problem is hiring a financial advisor, who can certainly help guide you in your investing journey. But they can also be costly — and they aren’t always available when you need them.

For those who want stock tips at a moment’s notice, there are online stock analysis platforms like Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor Canada, which offers expert insight to help you make smart investing decisions, whenever you need it.

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Once you’ve got the right advice, it’s time to think about where to actually start putting your dollars to work, even if the market feels expensive right now.

Don’t be nervous to buy stocks at a high — but keep fees low

Orman and Fitz-Gerald addressed a common concern: Investors who avoid buying because a stock has already climbed to a high will potentially miss out.

For example, when viewers were frustrated by recommendations to buy Chevron at what felt like a peak, the stock continued to climb even higher — those who passed on it missed the gains.

“I’ve learned that lesson the hard way. I thought I was being smart, I bailed out, I made mistakes, I lost money,” Fitz-Gerald told Orman. “But if you continue to lean in when you feel that way and you get uncomfortable, I’ve learned that’s a heck of a lot more profitable.”

One way to maximize your comfort is to minimize what economists call “transaction costs (9).” Transaction costs are exactly what they sound like — extra expenses, like commissions or fees, on top of the price of any good or service being exchanged.