U.S. stocks dropped sharply Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing just above the level it was around President Trump’s inauguration.
The index finished at 20,180 points, just above the 19,732 points it was at when Trump came into office, a decline of 12.96%. The drop was the second-largest decline ever, second only to 1987’s “Black Monday.”
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite also closed down, 11.98% and 12.32%, respectively.
U.S. stocks plunged on opening Monday as a second emergency rate cut by the Federal Reserve failed to reassure investors panicked by the coronavirus pandemic.
Shortly after opening, trading on the S&P 500 was halted for 15 minutes due to the market plunging more than 7%. It was the third time in the last week that trading was halted due to markets falling.
The Dow also opened lower but pared back some of those losses during afternoon trading. However, those losses were given back in late-day trading and erased most of the 2,000-point gains it made on Friday.
Oil prices also closed down, with Brent Crude dropping more than 11% at closing.
Bad news in the markets comes as Washington seeks to advance another stimulus package to counter the effects of the coronavirus on the economy.
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Monday that Washington would take steps to provide financial help to airlines suffering from the coronavirus pandemic, as a leading industry group asked for $50 billion in aid.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is predicting a major economic recovery later this year if the nation is able to contain the pandemic.
“I expect we’ll have a big rebound later in the year,” Mnuchin said on Fox News Sunday. “So this isn’t like the financial crisis, as I’ve said. This will have an end to it as we confront the virus.”
Mnuchin said the pandemic must be contained through public health measures to protect the economy. If the country can succeed in that, he said, commerce will pick up briskly.
