I think the stock market WILL have a bearing on the pre-war card market. Some rare and star cards will always sell well, but I think prices in general will fall if the stock market continues to have more bad days than good, as people deal with real or perceived losses of some chunk of disposable income.
But for me, the stock market might dictate how long I put off retirement but not the buying of cards I need. As I head toward exiting late middle-age (at least on paper, though not necessarily in mind or body), I tend not to stray from a philosophy I adopted when I was firmly in middle-age: Unless I'm completing a set and need a scarce piece for my collection, or a particular card I've always wanted but still have yet to purchase (in which case I might be willing to overpay a bit), I try my best not to buy anything that my wife or kids can't sell the next day for at least around the same price that I paid for it!
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