The 2010 Flash Crash caused a sudden plunge in U.S. stock markets on May 6, 2010.
During the afternoon of May 6, major U.S. equity indexes fell rapidly and then recovered much of the decline within minutes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average temporarily dropped by nearly 1,000 points, an exceptionally large intraday movement at the time. Some individual securities briefly traded at extremely low prices.
Investigations found that automated trading and stressed market conditions interacted in a way that amplified selling. A later U.S. investigation concluded that trader Navinder Singh Sarao’s activity contributed to the episode, although the event reflected broader market-structure weaknesses rather than one simple cause.
The crash led regulators and exchanges to strengthen safeguards, including circuit breakers and single-stock trading pauses. It is distinct from Black Monday in 1987 and the pandemic-era market shock of 2020.