On April 4, 2025, the U.S. stock market experienced a dramatic downturn, marking one of the most severe single-day drops in recent history. Major indices, including the S&P 500, NASDAQ, Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow 30), and Russell 2000, all recorded significant losses, with declines ranging from 4.37% to 5.97% in a single day. Over the past five days, the indices saw even steeper drops, ranging from 7.86% to 10.02%. According to Yahoo Finance, this marked the worst week for the S&P 500, NASDAQ, and Russell 2000 since March 2020, and for the Dow 30 since October 2020—periods synonymous with extreme market volatility during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 U.S. presidential election, respectively.
The S&P 500 closed at 5,074.08, down 5.97% for the day and 9.08% over the past five days. The tech-heavy NASDAQ bore the brunt of the sell-off, dropping 5.82% to 15,587.79, with a staggering 10.02% decline over the week. The Dow 30 fell 5.50% to 38,314.86, losing 7.86% over five days, while the Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, declined 4.37% to 1,827.03, with a 9.70% drop over the same period. These figures reflect a broad-based sell-off that spared no sector of the market, signaling deep investor concerns about the economic outlook.
The comparison to 2020 is telling. March 2020 saw global markets crash as the COVID-19 pandemic triggered widespread fear, lockdowns, and economic uncertainty. October 2020, meanwhile, was marked by volatility ahead of the U.S. presidential election and concerns about a second wave of the pandemic. For the markets to perform as poorly as they did during those periods suggests that a significant event or series of events likely triggered this downturn. While the exact cause remains unclear, several factors could have contributed to the sharp decline.