The S&P 500 index dropped significantly between January 3 and September 9, 2022. As of January 3, the index stood at 4,796.56 points, and it dropped approximately 15 percent by September 2022. In February 2024, the daily value of the S&P 500 increased over 5,500 and reached 5,842.47 as of October 16 of the same year.

View data of the S&P 500, an index of the stocks of 500 leading companies in the US economy, which provides a gauge of the U.S. equity market.

March 24, 2020 saw the largest one-day gain in the history of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), with the index increasing 2,112.98 points. This occurred approximately two weeks after the largest one-day point loss occurred on March 9, 2020, which was triggered by the growing panic about the coronavirus outbreak worldwide.

Index fluctuations

The DJIA is an index of 30 large companies traded on the New York Stock Exchange. It is one of the numbers that financial analysts watch closely, using it as a bellwether for the United States economy. Seeing when these large gains occur, as well as the largest one-day point losses, gives insight to why these fluctuations may occur. The gains in 2009 are likely adjustments after major losses during the Financial Crisis, but those in 2018 are probably signs of high market volatility.

Other leading financial indicators

While the DJIA is closely watched, it only gives insight on the performance of thirty leading U.S. companies. An index like the S&P 500, tracking 500 companies, can give a more comprehensive overview of the United States economy. Even so, this only reflects investment. Other parts of the economy, such as consumer spending or unemployment rate are not well reflected in stock market indices.

Between March 4 and March 11, 2020, the S&P 500 index declined by twelve percent, descending into a bear market. On March 12, 2020, the S&P 500 plunged 9.5 percent, its steepest one-day fall since 1987. The index began to recover at the start of April and reached a peak in December 2021. As of December 29, 2024, the value of the S&P 500 stood at 5,942.47 points. Coronavirus sparks stock market chaos Stock markets plunged in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, with investors fearing its spread would destroy economic growth. Buoyed by figures that suggested cases were leveling off in China, investors were initially optimistic about the virus being contained. However, confidence in the market started to subside as the number of cases increased worldwide. Investors were deterred from buying stocks, and this was reflected in the markets – the values of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite also dived during the height of the crisis. What is a bear market? A bear market occurs when the value of a stock market suffers a prolonged decline of more than 20 percent over a period of at least two months. The COVID-19 pandemic caused severe concern and sent stock markets on a steep downward spiral. The S&P 500 achieved a record closing high of 3,386 on February 19, 2020. However, just over three weeks later, the market closed on 2,480, which represented a decline of around 26 percent in only 16 sessions.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted significant points losses due to the global impact of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. With stocks falling sharply, the Dow recorded its worst single-day points drop ever, plunging 2,997 points – nearly 13 percent – on March 16, 2020.

Boeing stock hits turbulence The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is a stock market index that tracks the share prices of the top 30 U.S. companies. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, firms heavily dependent on travel and tourism had a particularly difficult start to the year. Due to lower production rates and the suspension of flights in the first quarter of 2020, Boeing’s revenue dropped to 16.9 billion U.S. dollars – this represented a year-on-year decline of 26 percent. However, in the second quarter of 2020, Boeing was one of the leading stocks in the DJIA index. Shares were boosted by the relaxing of travel restrictions and greater passenger confidence in flying.

Comparing market collapses Index points represent changes in the collective value of the 30 stocks in the DJIA, providing the general direction of the market. March 2020 was one of the most volatile months in the history of the stock index. Not only did the market record significant losses, but it also saw dramatic one-day points gains. Percentages can also be used to gain a deeper understanding of the true value gained or lost on the market. The largest single-day percentage loss in the history of the Dow remains ‘Black Monday’ in October 1987.

Ten years of daily data for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) market index. Each point of the dataset is represented by the daily closing price for the DJIA. Historical data can be downloaded via the red button on the upper right corner of the chart.

The statistic shows the worst days of the Dow Jones Industrial Average index from 1897 to 2024. The worst day in the history of the index was October 19 1987, when the index value decreased by 22.61 percent. The largest single day loss in points was on May 2, 2018.

The S&P 500, an index of 500 publicly traded companies in the United States, closed at 5,881.63 points on the last trading day of December 2024. What is the S&P 500? The S&P 500 is a stock market index that tracks the evolution of 500 companies. In contrast to the Dow Jones Industrial Index, which measures the performance of thirty large U.S. companies, the S&P 500 shows the sentiments in the broader market. Publicly traded companies Companies on the S&P 500 are publicly traded, meaning that anyone can invest in them. A large share of adults in the United States invest in the stock market, though many of these are through a retirement account or mutual fund. While most people make a modest return, the most successful investors have made billions of U.S. dollars through investing.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) index dropped around 8,000 points in the four weeks from February 12 to March 11, 2020, but has since recovered and peaked at 44,910.65 points as of November 24, 2024. In February 2020 - just prior to the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the DJIA index stood at a little over 29,000 points. U.S. markets suffer as virus spreads The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a turbulent period for stock markets – the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also recorded dramatic drops. At the start of February, some analysts remained optimistic that the outbreak would ease. However, the increased spread of the virus started to hit investor confidence, prompting a record plunge in the stock markets. The Dow dropped by more than 3,500 points in the week from February 21 to February 28, which was a fall of 12.4 percent – its worst percentage loss in a week since October 2008. Stock markets offer valuable economic insights The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a stock market index that monitors the share prices of the 30 largest companies in the United States. By studying the performance of the listed companies, analysts can gauge the strength of the domestic economy. If investors are confident in a company’s future, they will buy its stocks. The uncertainty of the coronavirus sparked fears of an economic crisis, and many traders decided that investment during the pandemic was too risky.

The value of the DJIA index amounted to 43,191.24 at the end of March 2025, up from 21,917.16 at the end of March 2020. Global panic about the coronavirus epidemic caused the drop in March 2020, which was the worst drop since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008. Dow Jones Industrial Average index – additional information The Dow Jones Industrial Average index is a price-weighted average of 30 of the largest American publicly traded companies on New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ, and includes companies like Goldman Sachs, IBM and Walt Disney. This index is considered to be a barometer of the state of the American economy. DJIA index was created in 1986 by Charles Dow. Along with the NASDAQ 100 and S&P 500 indices, it is amongst the most well-known and used stock indexes in the world. The year that the 2018 financial crisis unfolded was one of the worst years of the Dow. It was also in 2008 that some of the largest ever recorded losses of the Dow Jones Index based on single-day points were registered. On September 29th of 2008, for instance, the Dow had a loss of 106.85 points, one of the largest single-day losses of all times. The best years in the history of the index still are 1915, when the index value increased by 81.66 percent in one year, and 1933, year when the index registered a growth of 63.74 percent.

The annual returns of the Nasdaq 100 Index from 1986 to 2024. fluctuated significantly throughout the period considered. The Nasdaq 100 index saw its lowest performance in 2008, with a return rate of -41.89 percent, while the largest returns were registered in 1999, at 101.95 percent. As of June 11, 2024, the rate of return of Nasdaq 100 Index stood at 14 percent. The Nasdaq 100 is a stock market index comprised of the 100 largest and most actively traded non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. How has the Nasdaq 100 evolved over years? The Nasdaq 100, which was previously heavily influenced by tech companies during the dot-com boom, has undergone significant diversification. Today, it represents a broader range of high-growth, non-financial companies across sectors like consumer services and healthcare, reflecting the evolving landscape of the global economy. The annual development of the Nasdaq 100 recently has generally been positive, except for 2022, when the NASDAQ experienced a decline due to worries about escalating inflation, interest rates, and regulatory challenges. What are the leading companies on Nasdaq 100? In August 2023, Apple was the largest company on the Nasdaq 100, with a market capitalization of 2.73 trillion euros. Also, Alphabet C, Alphabet, Amazon, and Broadcom were among the five leading companies included in the index. Market capitalization is one of the most common ways of measuring how big a company is in the financial markets. It is calculated by multiplying the total number of outstanding shares by the current market price.