Oct 10, 2018

Stocks have worst day since February

Courtenay Brown

U.S. stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 832 points, or more than 3%. The S&P 500 fell 3.3%, while the Nasdaq was off over 4%.

Big picture: This was the worst day for U.S. stock markets since February 8, when the Dow lost 1,175 points.

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Data: Money.Net; Chart: Harry Stevens/Axios
  • Tech stocks, including Amazon which slid more than 6%, led the carnage.
  • Yields continued their run-up, with the 10-year spiking to 3.2%
  • Wall Street's fear index, the VIX, hit its highest level since June.

The White House, meanwhile, seems to be taking things in stride:

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Felix Salmon

When war pays dividends

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

War. What is it good for? The stock market, it turns out.

The big picture: Don't pay too much attention to short-term stock-market gyrations. When you take a step back, it looks like war tends to be good — not bad — for American stocks.

Go deeperArrowJan 9, 2020
Courtenay Brown

2019 stock market gains still leave Trump behind his predecessors

Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios Visuals

The S&P 500 has jumped 42% under President Trump — according to market data from the inauguration through 2019's final day of trading.

Why it matters: Trump uses the stock market's surge as a barometer of his presidency's success — one that, along with the 50-year low unemployment rate, he's sure to continue to tout as the 2020 election approaches — but the gains under him lag those under former Presidents Barack Obama, when stocks rebounded from the lows of the financial crisis, and George H.W. Bush.

Go deeperArrowJan 1, 2020 - Economy & Business
Axios

Why it was so hard for investors to lose money in 2019

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

2019 was the rare year when the simple investing strategy of targeting almost anything would have worked, the New York Times notes.

What happened: A series of interest rate cuts this year from the Federal Reserve — the first since the Great Recession — juiced the markets, making it a great time for investors.

Go deeperArrowDec 31, 2019