The ‘Great Hurricane’, Maggie Thatcher, Michael Jackson and shoulder pads – it must be the 30th anniversary of Black Monday.
What was ‘Black Monday’?
On 19 October 1987, global stock markets experience heavy falls. In the space of 24 hours, the Dow Jones Industrial Index (DJIA) fell 22.6%, destroying the previous record one-day fall of 12.8% set during the Wall Street Crash of 28 October, 1929.
Asia and Europe all suffered huge falls of up to 23%. The UK’s leading benchmark index closed down 10.84% at 2052.3 on the 19 October 1987, only to fall further by 12.22% at 1801.6 the following day.
Some stock market commentators have since attributed ‘Black Monday’ to worries about a slowing global economy, high stock valuations and a computer glitch, but it is difficult to pin the cause onto any one particular factor.
Five years after ‘Black Monday’
In the five years following the crash, stock markets made a strong recovery, according to global investment manager, Schroders.
US stock prices grew by 14.7%
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