I’m not sure what it is about October, but it has historically been a spooky month for investors. The haunting traces back to the Wall Street Crash of 1929, a four-day collapse of stock prices that began on October 24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 25%, making it the worst such decline in U.S. history. Another notable plunge took place in late October 1987, known as Black Monday. The Dow dropped just over 22% — making it the largest one-day stock market decline in history. Then there was the tumultuous 2008 market crash. The first big drop in the… Read More
I’m not sure what it is about October, but it has historically been a spooky month for investors. The haunting traces back to the Wall Street Crash of 1929, a four-day collapse of stock prices that began on October 24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 25%, making it the worst such decline in U.S. history. Another notable plunge took place in late October 1987, known as Black Monday. The Dow dropped just over 22% — making it the largest one-day stock market decline in history. Then there was the tumultuous 2008 market crash. The first big drop in the Dow took place on September 29, 2008, when it shed more than 777 points. It fell by another 733 points on October 15. And just last year you may recall that the market peaked at the end of September. A fourth-quarter slide began in October, which ultimately set stocks back about 14% through December. With events like these, it’s easy to see why the month of October carries a negative connotation. In truth, though, outside of these major declines, the month has historically been a good one for markets. In fact, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac, October is the… Read More