Market Turmoil

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Market Turmoil

War, economic disaster and political upheaval have rattled stock markets many times over the last century. Here’s a look at the market’s reaction to some unnerving events:

* July 31, 1914: Stock exchanges around the globe suspend trading as World War I looms in Europe. The New York Stock Exchange does not fully reopen for four and a half months--the longest shutdown in NYSE history.

* March 1933: Trading is suspended as President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a “bank holiday” to calm a Depression-wracked nation. The Dow rises 15% the day trading resumes, and 66% for the year.

* Dec. 7, 1941: Japan attacks the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, precipitating U.S. entry into World War II. The Dow falls 2.9% on Monday, Dec. 8, and 2.9% the next day.

* Aug. 15-16, 1945: The NYSE closes for two days to celebrate surrender of Japan and the end of World War II. The Dow falls 0.3% the day the market reopens.

* June 25, 1950: North Korea invades South Korea, escalating the Cold War. The markets open the following day, a Monday, and the Dow falls 4.6%.

* Sept. 24, 1955: The Dow tumbles 6.5% when stock exchanges open Monday after President Eisenhower suffers a heart attack over the weekend.

* Nov. 22, 1963: U.S. markets close early after falling 2.9% the day President Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. They remain closed Monday, the day of Kennedy’s funeral. The Dow rises 4.5% as trading resumes Tuesday, Nov. 26.

* Jan. 20, 1968: The Dow falls for three straight days after the outbreak of the Tet Offensive, which dashes hopes the U.S. is winning the Vietnam War.

* March 30, 1981: President Reagan is shot by John Hinckley Jr. in Washington, D.C. The Dow falls 0.3%, but rises 2% over the next two trading sessions.

* Jan. 28, 1986: Space shuttle Challenger explodes on liftoff, killing all aboard. The Dow rises 1.2%.

* Aug. 2, 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait, threatening Middle East oil supplies. The Dow falls 6.5% over the next four trading sessions on its way to the first bear market since 1987.

* Feb. 26, 1993: A truck bomb damages the World Trade Center in New York. The Dow rises 0.2%.

* April 19, 1995: The federal building in Oklahoma City is destroyed by a truck bomb, killing 168. The Dow rises 0.7%.

* Sept. 11, 2001: U.S. markets don’t open for trading after hijacked airliners crash into the World Trade Center, destroying the buildings. Markets are to remain closed at least until Thursday.