Reuters
byJohn Carney5 Feb 20180
Stocks raced sharply downward on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling by nearly 1,600, around 6 percent, before recovering to end with a decline of 1,179 points.
All the major indexes were down significantly. The S&P 500 fell by around 4 percent, the Nasdaq Composite fell by around 3.8 percent, and the broad Russell 2000 fell by around 2.9 percent.
Monday’s sell-off was not only deep but widespread, with all 11 sectors in the S&P 500 index posting declines. Financials, health-care, and energy sectors saw the steepest declines.
The declines erased the gains in the S&P and the Dow for the year. The S&P has lost more than $1 trillion in market capitalization, according to CNBC.
After a bumpy morning, the sell-off took on steam in the afternoon. The Dow shed hundreds of points when the sell-off accelerated beginning around 2 P.M. In the final hour of trading, stocks recovered nearly half of their value only to resume falling once again.
The Vix, which is a volatility index and often referred to as a “fear gauge,” rose 88 percent, its biggest one day gain ever.
