Stock Market Crash Dow Jones industrial down 800.06

The Dow Jones industrial average fell as much as 800.06, then recovered in erratic trading to a loss of 518.34, or 5.02 percent, to 9,807.04, dropping below 10,000 for the first time since Oct. 29, 2004. The Dow surpassed its previous record for a one-day point decline -- 778, which the blue chips suffered a week ago when investors feared the bailout package might not pass Congress.
Closed At 369.88
800.06

New York Stock Exchange
While the market's declines were sharp Friday, some of the selling pressure appeared to ease after the steep drop at the open. Still, many investors have waited until the final hour of trading each day this week to hit the "sell" button, so investors appeared uneasy about how the market would look at 4 p.m., when the closing bell sounds.

At the start of Friday's session, losses for the year totaled a staggering $8.3 trillion, as measured by the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index, which tracks 5,000 U.S.-based companies representing nearly all stocks traded in the U.S.

In midday trading, the Dow fell 388.53, or 4.53 percent, to 8,190.66. At its low point Friday, the Dow was at 7,882.51, just 60 points above its low in Wall Street's last bear market, 7,286.27, reached Oct. 9, 2002.

Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index declined 55.64, or 6.11 percent, to 854.28, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 75.59, or 4.59 percent, 1,569.53.

About 200 stocks advanced while about 3,000 declined on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to a heavy 1.08 billion shares.

Investors continue to shift money into safer investments, most of it going into the government bond market. The yield on the three-month Treasury bill plunged to 0.28 percent from 0.58 percent late Thursday. That suggests that demand for T-bills, regarded by investors as the safest assets around, remains high.