September is often a loser for investors

The stock market plunge Thursday is no fun for investors, and also perhaps not that surprising given the fact that it is September.

According to the Stock Trader’s Almanac, September is often the biggest percentage loser for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ.

There are lots of factors that make September such a down month. Traders often come back from August vacations and want to shake up their portfolios, while other more technical factors can also upset trading.

This year, of course, we also have that pesky fear that we’re heading back into recession.

The Dow ended Thursday down about 390 points, after at one point flirting with a loss of around 500 points.

Of course, few people have forgotten September of 2008, when the financial crisis roiled markets.

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That’s actually not the worst September in recent memory. According to the Stock Trader’s Almanac, the Dow was down 12.4 percent in September of 2002.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

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 The markets swung plenty in August, but September is historically worse