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Dow has another record point drop on Thursday as coronavirus cases spread

Posted at 6:29 AM, Mar 12, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-12 16:10:52-04

For the second time this week, markets were briefly halted trading as the market fell 7 percent, triggering a "circuit-breaker."

The New York Stock Exchange halted trading less than 10 minutes after the market opened, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 7 percent.

By the end of the day, the Dow set an all-time point drop, losing more than 2,300 points. The drop marked a nearly 10 percent fall for the Dow from yesterday's totals.

Six of the largest eight one-day point drops have taken place in the last three weeks. Thursday's drop ranked fourth in the largest decine based on percentage, only trailing the market crashes of 1929 and 1987.

In one month, the Dow has lost 28% of its value.

Stock exchange rules require that trading be halted for 15 minutes in the event of a 7 percent loss. Trading will be halted again for 15 minutes in the event of a 13 percent loss, and trading will end for the in the event of a 20 percent loss.

On Monday, markets also halted trading for 15 minutes when the market hit a circuit breaker.

The losses come hours after President Donald Trump announced that he was banning travel to Europe amid the coronavirus pandemic. He also announced that he would ask Congress to subsidize small businesses that lost business as a result of the outbreak.