Updated Mar 23, 2020 - Economy & Business

Stock market tumbles as coronavirus stimulus hangs in limbo

Courtenay Brown

Exterior of the New York Stock Exchange, which closed the trading floor today. Photo: Angela Weiss via AFP

Stocks closed down about 3% on Monday, though they finished above the lowest levels of the day.

By the numbers: The S&P 500 joined the Dow in shedding all the gains since President Trump's inauguration in 2017, a nod to how steep the market drop has been in an extremely short period of time.

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Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios Visuals

The big picture: Stocks swung sharply on Monday amid more Federal Reserve action to support an economy thrown into a tailspin thanks to the coronavirus pandemic and stalled progress on stimulus in Washington.

  • The S&P fell 2.9%, while the Dow closed down 3.1% (or 582 points) and the Nasdaq fell a fractional 0.2%.

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Felix Salmon

The market is not quite as bad as the Dow makes it look

Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios Visuals

One high-profile group of stocks has been doing particularly badly during the coronavirus crisis — the 30 companies that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The state of play: The Dow stocks are down 33% over the past month, compared with a 30% decline for the S&P 500, and a 24% drop for the more tech-focused Nasdaq. On up days and down days the Dow has generally underperformed the market as a whole.

Go deeperArrowMar 19, 2020 - Economy & Business
Courtenay Brown

Stocks have worst day since 1987

Photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images

The S&P 500 closed 12% lower on Monday, while the Dow fell 13% (or 2,999 points).

Driving the news: The sell-off accelerated during President Trump's afternoon press conference as concerns about the coronavirus outbreak's economic impact continued to grip markets.

Go deeperArrowUpdated Mar 16, 2020 - Economy & Business
Courtenay Brown

Stocks sink 4% as Dow closes in bear market

Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Stocks fell more than 4% on Wednesday, with the Dow closing in bear market territory — or 20% below the record high hit in February.

Why it matters: The Dow's steep drop ends one major index's record 11-year stretch without a 20% decline, as Wall Street grapples with just how bad the coronavirus will be for the global economy. The S&P 500 is about 30 points away from hitting bear market territory.

Go deeperArrowUpdated Mar 11, 2020 - Economy & Business