Great Depression Stock Market Crash 2008

In January 2008, the DOW Jones Industrial Average, which is a well-known barometer of the American stock market, reached 12,800 points.

A year later, it had dropped by 30%, falling to 9,034 points.

In September 2008, there were three stomach-churning stock market drops:
•September 15, 2008: DOW fell 504 points
•September 17, 2008: DOW fell 449 points
•September 29, 2008: DOW fell 777 points (this day, perhaps more than any other, came the closest to mirroring “Black Tuesday,” which occurred on October 29, 1929)

These stock market crashes shook people’s faith in the strength of the economy, and almost overnight, consumer spending plunged. When average Americans stopped spending money (cutting back on all types of purchases, large and small), small businesses and corporations tightened their belts.

Not coincidentally, the stock market crashes were followed by the slashing of jobs.

Look at these numbers of job losses, which represent the darkest six-month period in American history, in terms of unemployment:
October 2008: 240,000 job losses
November 2008: 533,000 job losses
December 2008: 524,000 job losses
January 2009: 650,000 job losses
February 2009: 651,000 job losses
March 2009: 663,000 job losses

By February 2012, the DOW reached a symbolic milestone when it closed above 13,000 points, but the job market has yet to recover.