Skip to main content
U.K. Edition
Friday, 29 March 2024

Dow plunges 10% in worst day since '87 crash

Duration: 02:27s 0 shares 1 views

Dow plunges 10% in worst day since '87 crash
Dow plunges 10% in worst day since '87 crash

Wall Street closed at the lows of the day, with the Dow plunging 10 percent in its biggest percentage drop since the October 1987 crash, as stocks confirmed a bear market.

Conway G.

Gittens reports.

Stocks cratered Thursday in a stunning selloff.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its biggest one-day blow since the market crash of 1987; digging deeper into its first bear market in a decade.

Blue chips tumbled 2,352 points on Thursday - for a massive 10 percent decline.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted sizable losses as well to join the Dow in bear market territory.

That's when stocks are down more than 20 percent from record highs… But stocks are now closer to a 30 percent below the high set just last month.

The selling was so fierce trading curbs were set off - temporarily halting trading for the second time this week.

And over in Europe - it was the worst day for stocks - ever.

The intense selling came after a surprise European travel ban by the White House fueled fears the coronavirus pandemic could drag the global economy into recession.

Thursday's losses came even as Federal Reserve announced it will pump half-a-trillion dollars into the financial system for short-term funding for banks.

James McDonald, CEO and Chief Investment Officer at Hercules Investments, sees more selling ahead.

SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH): JAMES MCDONALD, CEO/CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER, HERCULES INVESTMENTS, SAYING: "When earnings come down markets contract and so we have the double effect of the health scare and then the coming effect of economic contraction and when you're at the top of a bull cycle that's never gone as far and as high as it has this past cycle, you're going to see significant contraction; people taking money off the table and we expect the market to lose half of its value from its peak and at that point we'll go back in and start buying." Global airlines scrambled to adopt to the coming U.S. ban on European travel, with an exemption for the UK.

Air France says it is coming up with a contingency plan with its U.S. partner Delta.

And Norwegian Airlines says it is temporarily laying of half of its employees and will re-route as many European passengers through its London hub to avoid the travel ban.

Airlines stocks were slammed, led by a 24 percent drop in United Airlines.

Boeing took a hit on fear struggling airlines won't make good on buying new aircraft.

The aerospace giant tumbled 18 percent.

But the market damage wasn't limited to just travel and tourism stocks.

Every sector suffered major losses Thursday, with U.S. stocks now basically wiping out gains since 2019.

You might like

Related news coverage

Dow drops almost 3,000 points

Reuters Studio

U.S. stocks suffered their biggest one-day drop Monday since the 1987 crash. As Fred Katayama reports, the Fed's emergency action..

Advertisement

More coverage