Which 1987 crash day is remembered as Black Monday?

Black Monday, October 19, 1987, was the day of the sharpest one-day percentage fall in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The Dow dropped 22.6% in a single session, surpassing the percentage decline recorded on any day during the 1929 crash. Selling spread internationally: markets in Hong Kong, Australia, the United Kingdom, and many other places also suffered major losses.

Analysts have linked the episode to several factors, including rising interest rates, trade tensions, market overvaluation, and computerized portfolio-insurance strategies. These automated or rule-based selling programs could reinforce falling prices when markets moved quickly.

Black Monday did not lead to a depression comparable to the 1930s. The Federal Reserve supplied reassurance and liquidity, and the Dow eventually recovered. The event nevertheless changed market regulation, including the development of circuit breakers designed to pause trading during extreme declines.