The Dow Jones Industrial Average’s lowest closing level during the 2008 financial crisis and its aftermath was 6,547.05, recorded on 9 March 2009. This close marked the trough of the severe U.S. equity-market decline that began in 2007.
The crisis involved a collapse in the U.S. housing market, failures and rescues of financial institutions, frozen credit markets, and a sharp worldwide economic contraction. Stock prices fell especially rapidly after the failure of Lehman Brothers in September 2008, although the market continued declining into March 2009.
The Dow had closed above 14,000 in October 2007, so the March 2009 low represented a loss of more than half from that peak. The index later recovered as emergency government measures, central-bank support, and improving financial conditions restored investor confidence.
This figure is a closing value, not the lowest intraday level. The Dow also reached a lower point during trading on 6 March 2009, but its official closing low came three days later.