The ASX share market is going through some rough volatility. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is currently down by 4.2%. What are investors supposed to buy when so many share prices have been hit heavily?

It can be hard to choose, so I'll give some thoughts on which areas could be good investments, in my opinion.

When virtually everything is down, almost every investment looks like an appealing opportunity.

This isn't the first time we've seen heavy declines this decade. The COVID-19 crash in 2020 and the inflation hit of 2022 were also painful. We did see a recovery after that, thankfully. In hindsight, those two years were two of the best times to invest over the past decade.

Having said that, I think there are three types of potential investments on the ASX that could make smart buys after the volatility.

The biggest declines

There have been some very steep falls in the last few days, and the overall decline started in mid-February 2025.

Inevitably, some ASX shares drop further than others at times like this. There's no guarantee those investments will recover, but there's good potential for them to rebound stronger than the overall market when confidence returns. We may need to be patient, though.

Some of the businesses I'd view as ideas to recover include GQG Partners Inc (ASX: GQG), Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (ASX: PNI), Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV), Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ), Global X Fang+ ETF (ASX: FANG), BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO), Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG), Siteminder Ltd (ASX: SDR), and others like that.

I'd want to choose businesses I think have global earnings potential (not limited to the US) and have suffered a heavy share price decline, making them more attractive.

Potential ASX share beneficiaries

There is no certainty about what businesses will be able to succeed during these times.

However, there are bets by the market that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) may be forced to reduce the official cash rate to counter any negative effects of the trade war.

Some businesses have struggled because of high interest rates in the last few years. I think they could be investment opportunities in the current sell-off and benefit if rates are cut.

I'm particularly thinking of property-related ASX shares such as Centuria Industrial REIT (ASX: CIP), Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF), Brickworks Ltd (ASX: BKW), Metcash Ltd (ASX: MTS), and Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (ASX: CLW).

Exchange-traded funds

Aside from the ASX-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) I've already mentioned, I think there are a number of high-quality funds that have fallen, despite the fact they're full of high-quality, resilient businesses.

I'd consider ideas like the VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (ASX: QUAL), the Betashares Global Quality Leaders ETF (ASX: QLTY), and the VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT).

By investing in ETFs, we can spread the risk thanks to diversification.