The 2020 COVID-19 stock-market crash reached the Dow’s largest one-day point loss on March 16, 2020.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,997.10 points that day, a decline of about 12.9%. The collapse occurred as the COVID-19 pandemic spread internationally, governments imposed restrictions, and investors reassessed the outlook for economic activity and corporate earnings.
The March 16 session was one of several violent trading days. The Dow also suffered major percentage declines on March 9 and March 12, while automatic market-wide circuit breakers were triggered during the turmoil.
The crash was followed by an exceptionally rapid rebound in U.S. equities after fiscal support, monetary easing, progress in public-health responses, and changing expectations about reopening. The speed of the recovery distinguished this episode from many earlier crashes.