A bubble is a phenomenon in which investors and traders pursue stocks (or other items) at such a feverish pace that prices rise to irrational levels. Buyers seem to be under a mass delusion that the market can only go higher. Before long, speculators hoping for quick profits jump in, creating a mania. Eventually, investors come back to their senses, buyers disappear, and prices fall. That can lead to a selling panic. There have been a handful of bubbles in history, all of which ended quite badly for investors. One of the most spectacular bubbles in history occurred in Holland in the
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