Chart of the Day - Tuesday, March 24th, 2020

Today’s Chart of the Day was shared on Twitter by Ryan Detrick (@RyanDetrick). The Dow Jones Industrial Average just had its best day since 1933. Ryan’s table shows some of the best days in the history of the index, as well as the 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 60-month forward returns following each of those days. The table speaks to the fact that some of the best days for stocks often occur in bear markets. Almost all of the dates on the table happened during the Great Depression or the 2008 Financial Crisis. The one exception was in October 1987 when the market rebounded from Black Monday. As you can see, the Dow often struggled in the following months and years. On average, the index was down 3.21% one year later. Today’s rally was certainly a much-needed sigh of relief for the bulls. However, if history is any guide, this is in no way a sign that “all is clear” for stocks.