The 2008 stock market crash: how far the S&P 500 and Dow fell

How far did the S&P 500 fall in the 2008 stock market crash?

The S&P 500 closed at 1,565.15 on 9 October 2007, its high before the crisis. It reached a low of 676.53 on 9 March 2009, a cumulative fall of 56.78% over a 17-month bear market (Wikipedia, United States bear market of 2007 to 2009). About 889 index points disappeared between those dates. Peak to low is the standard way to size a crash, because it captures the whole slide instead of a single year.

A fall of that size changes the arithmetic of recovery. After losing 56.78%, an index needs a gain of about 131% to return to its starting level, since the remaining 43.22% must more than double. The detailed page on the S&P 500 in 2008 follows the fall month by month, and it treats size and duration as 2 separate questions.

What did the Dow Jones Industrial Average show about the 2008 crash?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 14,164.53 on 9 October 2007, the same day as the S&P 500 peak. Over the following 17 months it fell by more than 53%, with a low in early March 2009 (Wikipedia, Stock market crash of 2008). The Dow is quoted in points, so its daily drops became headlines, and its record point declines mark the worst sessions of the crash.

Both indexes peaked on the same day and bottomed within days of each other, which shows a market-wide move instead of a sector story. The S&P 500 broadens the picture with 500 companies, and the Dow adds a long record of headline points. Reading the 2 side by side gives a range of about 53% to 57% for the size of the crash.

What did the S&P 500 and Dow lose during calendar 2008?

Calendar years cut the 2008 stock market crash into slices that differ from the peak-to-low figure. The S&P 500 posted a price return of -38.49% in 2008, or -37.00% with dividends included, then gained 23.45% in 2009 (Wikipedia, S&P 500). The 2009 gain includes the final leg down to March, so one bear market shows a loss in one year and a rebound in the next.

The Dow closed 2007 at 13,264.82 and 2008 at 8,776.39, a calendar-year fall of 33.84%, then rose 18.82% in 2009 (Wikipedia, Dow Jones Industrial Average). The gap between 33.84% for the year and over 53% for the crash comes from timing, since the slide began in October 2007 and ended in March 2009. State the measure you use so comparisons stay fair.

Which days of the 2008 stock market crash hit hardest?

Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on 15 September 2008, and the Dow fell 504.48 points, or 4.42%, that day. On 29 September 2008 the Dow lost 777.68 points, or 6.98%, the largest point drop in history at that time, while the S&P 500 fell 8.8% (Wikipedia, Stock market crash of 2008). Those 2 sessions mark the moment fear took over from analysis.

The worst week ran from 6 to 10 October 2008. The Dow closed lower in all 5 sessions and fell 1,874.19 points, or 18.2%, its worst weekly decline ever in both points and percent. The S&P 500 lost more than 20% in the same week. Speed matters in a crash: a large share of the fall can arrive in a handful of sessions.

Why did the 2008 stock market crash follow the credit crisis?

Share prices fell because the banking system came under stress. The Federal Reserve helped JPMorgan Chase buy Bear Stearns in spring 2008 and supported AIG the day after Lehman filed (Federal Reserve History, The Great Recession and its aftermath). Lehman’s filing on 15 September 2008 was the largest bankruptcy in US history, and investors priced in the risk that more lenders would follow.

Treasury could buy assets through the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, and the Federal Reserve cut its policy rate from 4.5% at the end of 2007 to a range of 0 to 0.25% by the end of 2008. Markets kept falling into March 2009, months after the first rescue measures. The market bottom came well after the first policy support.

How long did it take to recover from the 2008 stock market crash?

The S&P 500 closed at 1,569.19 on 28 March 2013, above its 9 October 2007 closing record of 1,565.15, so the closing high returned more than 5 years after the peak (Wikipedia, Closing milestones of the S&P 500). The intraday high followed on 10 April 2013. The page on how long the market took to recover from 2008 breaks this timeline down by index and by measure.

The Dow ended 2012 at 13,104.14, below its 2007 year-end close of 13,264.82, and ended 2013 at 16,576.66. These year-end closes show the rebound reaching the Dow as well. A recovery date depends on the measure, price only or with dividends, so a claim about recovery needs its method stated. This page is general information, not investment advice.

How can 2008 stock market crash figures guide risk work today?

Peak-to-low figures give a risk team a concrete stress case: a 56.78% fall for the S&P 500 and more than 53% for the Dow. Applying them to a portfolio shows the loss that case would produce, which is a useful limit to set before markets move. As of October 2026, such stress cases work best as part of several scenarios, beside a milder case.

The EQOS Asia method page explains how structural scores add a forward-looking layer to historical figures like these, and the pricing page lists the available diagnostics. Historical drawdowns tell you how far markets have fallen. A structural score asks how fragile the system looks now. Using both gives decision makers in Singapore and across Asia a fuller view of crash risk.

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About the author

Stéphane Jambu

President, EQOS Forecast Asia

Stéphane Jambu leads EQOS Forecast Asia and works as a consultant in e-commerce, search visibility, and AI. LinkedIn profile