Inverse statistics in economics is considered. We argue that the natural
candidate for such statistics is the investment horizons distribution. This
distribution of waiting times needed to achieve a predefined level of return is
obtained from (often detrended) historic asset prices. Such a distribution
typically goes through a maximum at a time called the {\em optimal investment
horizon}, τρ∗, since this defines the most likely waiting time for
obtaining a given return ρ. By considering equal positive and negative
levels of return, we report on a quantitative gain-loss asymmetry most
pronounced for short horizons. It is argued that this asymmetry reflects the
market dynamics and we speculate over the origin of this asymmetry.Comment: Latex, 6 pages, 3 figure