Which stock-market crash describes the prolonged decline in U.S. share prices from 1973 to 1974?

The prolonged decline in U.S. share prices from 1973 to 1974 is known as the 1973–1974 stock market crash.

The downturn occurred amid high inflation, slowing economic growth, the 1973 oil crisis, and political uncertainty surrounding the Watergate scandal. The collapse of the Bretton Woods system had also changed the international monetary environment. Higher energy costs damaged corporate profits and intensified inflationary pressure.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a high in January 1973 and fell substantially over the following 21 months. The decline ended in December 1974, when the Dow reached a low near 577 points. In inflation-adjusted terms, the damage to investors was especially severe.

This episode is often grouped with the 1970s stagflation crisis, but it was not a single-day event like Black Monday in 1987. It was a sustained bear market shaped by economic, energy, monetary, and political shocks.