NEW YORK —- On March 9, 2009, it felt as if the world was ending.
The Dow Jones industrial average had tumbled to a 12-year low of 6,547, and seemed it would keep plunging. A day later, Citigroup Inc. stopped the market’s drop with news that it was turning a profit. That began the stock market’s answer to the Great Recession: the Great Rebound.
The numbers are hard to believe: The Dow has rocketed 61 percent in a year.
That’s the kind of gain that would normally come in five or six good years. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index —- which is the basis for many retirement accounts and mutual funds —- jumped 20 percent in the first 10 trading days after March low. It’s now up 68 percent.
And Citigroup? The bank that was slammed by the financial meltdown has seen its shares triple to $3.50.
There are still huge worries about jobs, deficits and the government’s role in propping up a shaky financial system. But the market’s climb means that, for now, investors are betting on a sustained economic recovery.
Here’s a by-the-numbers look at one of the most remarkable years in the history of the stock market.
— $5.6 trillion: Total gains in the stock market since March 9, as measured by the Dow Jones U.S. Total Stock Market Index, which tracks nearly all U.S.-based companies.
— $5.6 trillion: The amount that stocks are still down from October 2007, when the Dow peaked at 14,164.
http://www.nctimes.com/business/article_cb51b205-3e0a-5daa-8557-ba5b8a9159bf.html
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