What nickname is commonly given to the sharp U.S. stock-market sell-off on May 6, 2010?

The Flash Crash is the common nickname for the sharp U.S. stock-market sell-off on May 6, 2010. During the afternoon, major U.S. equity indexes suddenly plunged and then recovered much of the loss within minutes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly lost almost 1,000 points, at that time its largest intraday point decline.

The event affected stocks, futures, options, and exchange-traded funds across several trading venues. Investigations found that a large automated sell order in the E-mini S&P 500 futures market interacted with high-frequency trading and fragmented electronic markets. The precise sequence was complex, but the episode showed how quickly automated orders could transmit stress through connected markets.

The crash differed from a conventional bear market because the most extreme movement was extremely brief. Regulators later introduced or strengthened safeguards such as single-stock trading pauses and market-wide circuit breakers. An individual trader, Navinder Singh Sarao, was later convicted in connection with spoofing activity, but the broader event involved many interacting systems.