Dow plunges 7.2% and S&P 500’s plunge triggers 15 minute halt as oil prices deliver a punishing blow to Wall Street

[bostonangler]

U.S. stock-index markets on Monday tumbled, triggering a circuit breaker as fears of an oil price war between OPEC and Russia sent crude futures plunging, sending shock waves through global financial markets already shaken by the spread of COVID-19

Analysts seeking safety fled into government bonds, driving the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury plummeting 25.1 basis points to 0.43% — another all-time low. Yields and debt prices move in opposite directions.

What are major indexes doing?

Before being halted, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -7.89% was down 1,884.88 points, or 7.2%, at 23,979.90, while the S&P 500 SPX, -7.39% was off more than 208 points, or 7%, at 2,764.21. The Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, -7.33% were off 588 points, or 6.86%, at 7.987.44. Before regular trade, futures fell their 5% limit in early Asian trade and have traded near there for most of the session.

Circuit breakers:

 

• 7% decline: If the S&P 500 falls 7% from the previous session’s close before 3:25 p.m. Eastern, all stock-market trading halts for 15 minutes.
• 13% decline: After stocks reopen, it would then take a 13% decline by the S&P 500 before 3:25 p.m. to trigger a second trading halt, which would also last 15 minutes.
• 20%: After a second trading halt, it would take a decline of 20% to trigger a so-called Level 3 circuit breaker. Once a 20% drop occurs, that’s all she wrote. Trading is halted for the remainder of the day.

Read:Here’s when S&P 500 circuit breakers kick in on Monday

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average settled 256.50 points lower, or 1%, to 25,864.78, while the S&P 500 lost 51.57 points, or 1.7%, to close at 2,972.37. The Nasdaq Composite finished 162.98 points lower, or 1.9%, at 8,575.62.

 

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-futures-tumble-on-fears-of-oil-price-war-2020-03-08?siteid=yhoof2&yptr=yahoo

 

 

B/A

[bostonangler]

[bostonangler]