Dow Index dives 600 points to below 22,000, S&P500 enters bear market - worst Christmas Eve ever
New York (Dec 24) U.S. stocks plunged on Monday in their worst day of Christmas Eve trading ever, as the S&P 500 entered a bear market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 653 points Monday in volatile trading, falling below 22,000. The Dow sank more than 2 percent, then recovered nearly all of the day's losses, before again falling more than 2 percent. The S&P 500 fell 2.7 percent, slipping into a bear market as it fell 20.06 percent from recent highs. Wall Street traditionally considers a drop of 20 percent or more from recent highs to be a bear market. The Nasdaq Composite Index slid 2.2 percent.
Markets responded to turmoil in Washington. Multiple reports said President Donald Trump is discussing how to remove Jerome Powell from his position as chairman of the Federal Reserve. That discussion, as well as the recent market volatility, spurred Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to call the leaders of the six largest U.S. banks over the weekend. Additionally, Defense Secretary James Mattis announced he would step down at the end of February, saying his views do not align with the president's.
Trump resumed his attack on the Fed on Monday, tweeting that the central bank is "the only problem" with the U.S. economy.
"They don't have a feel for the Market," Trump said.
All 11 sectors of the S&P 500 are now negative for December, the fourth quarter and the full year.
Last week the Dow lost 1,655 points, or 6.8 percent. That was the Dow's worst week of trading since October 2008 during the financial crisis. The S&P 500 also lost 7 percent for the week. The Nasdaq Composite is now 22 percent below its record reached in August and is in a bear market.
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Stocks temporarily climbed off their lows after billionaire hedge fund manager David Tepper told CNBC that he's buying some stocks following the market's move lower. CNBC's Scott Wapner says that Tepper told him that "it's still a tough market," so you've "got to be careful about your exposure."
"The key question is whether the market of stellar returns is going to a market of slow or stalling returns," Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Financial, told CNBC.
"This is a market selling off as if it believes that we are headed in to a stall. Exacerbating that is the thesis that the Federal Reserve's policies are leading us to a hard landing, rather than a soft landing," Krosby said.
Last Wednesday, the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate for a fourth time this year and Chairman Jerome Powell signaled the central bank would continue to unwind its balance sheet at the current pace. The two monetary tightening actions are driving the stock market declines, traders say.
There was a report late Friday that President Donald Trump was discussing the possibility of firing Powell, a move that could undermine confidence in the U.S. financial system. Other media outlets later confirmed those reports, but Mnuchin sought to calm the fears that arose from those reports this weekend. A senior Treasury official acknowledged that the reports about Trump's discussion of firing Powell was part of the catalyst for Mnuchin's call but not the sole reason.
Mnuchin tweeted that he spoke with the president. Mnuchin declared that Trump said he never suggested firing Powell and doesn't believe he has the right to do so.
CNBC
