Which 2010 event saw U.S. stock indexes plunge and rebound within minutes?

The Flash Crash was the 2010 event in which U.S. stock indexes plunged and rebounded within minutes.

On 6 May 2010, major U.S. indexes fell rapidly, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing nearly 1,000 points and about 9% of its value at the session’s low. Prices then recovered much of the decline before the close. The episode affected stocks, futures, options, and exchange-traded products.

Investigations concluded that a large automated sell order, combined with already fragile market conditions and high-frequency trading activity, contributed to the extreme movement. In 2015, U.S. authorities charged trader Navinder Singh Sarao with contributing to the disruption through spoofing-related activity; the event had multiple interacting causes rather than one simple explanation.

The Flash Crash differs from Black Monday in 1987 because its most dramatic movement and recovery occurred in minutes. It led to new safeguards, including coordinated market-wide circuit breakers and rules for handling clearly erroneous trades.