The Crash of 2008-2009

On September 16, 2008, failures of large financial institutions in the United States rapidly devolved into a global crisis resulting in a number of bank failures in Europe and sharp reductions in the value of equities (stock) and commodities worldwide. In the United States, 15 banks failed in 2008, while several others were rescued through government intervention or acquisitions by other banks. On October 11, 2008, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that the world financial system was teetering on the "brink of systemic meltdown." The economic crisis caused countries to temporarily close their markets. The Times of London reported that the meltdown was being called the Crash of 2008.

The Black Week: beginning October 6, 2008 and lasting all week the DJIA closed lower for all five sessions. Volume levels were also record breaking. The DJIA fell over 1,874 points, or 18%, in its worst weekly decline ever on both a point and percentage basis. The S&P 500 fell more than 20%. On October 24, many of the world's stock exchanges experienced the worst declines in their history, with drops of around 10% in most indices.

By March 6th, 2009 the DJIA had dropped 54% to 6,469 from its peak of 14,164 on October 9th, 2007, a span of 17 months.