Another Monday, another three-digit drop in the Dow:
Panic came to Wall Street on Monday morning, but its stay was brief, at least for one day.
The Dow Jones industrials finished more than 360 points lower, dropping below the 10,000 mark for the first time in five years, as markets around the world spiraled downward in the face of a banking crisis that has tightened its grip on the global economy.
But the outcome could have been worse. After 2 p.m., the Dow was on track for an ignominious record — 800 points lower in a single session, worse than the 777-point drop recorded a week ago.
At one point, the broader stock market had fallen by about 8 percent.
Instead, investors appeared to have a small change of heart. The Dow marched back to the 10,000 milestone and even topped that number in the closing minutes of the session. When the final trades were counted, the index was off 363.35 points, or 3.5 percent, at 9,962.03.
The broader American stock market fell 3.8 percent, as measured by the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index.
“Today is watching the sky fall,” said T.J. Marta, a fixed income strategist at the Royal Bank of Canada.
Indeed.
Let’s put this in perspective. Since the beginning of September, the Dow alone has lost 1,532.38 point or 13.67% of it’s value:
Ouch.
[...] sure has been quite a week. 300 points on Monday. Another 500 points on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Henry Paulson tried to restore confidence and the Dow [...]