098: Black Monday 1987 - The Day the Market Fell Faster Than Ever

In this episode, we move closer to our own time—to October 19, 1987, the day known forever as Black Monday.

This is the story of the largest single-day percentage drop in stock-market history: the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 508 points, or 22.6 percent, in a single trading session. No other day in modern financial history - not 1929, not 2008 - saw such a violent one-day collapse. Trillions of dollars in market value vanished in hours. Trading floors descended into chaos; computer screens flashed red; brokers stared in disbelief as orders poured in and prices plunged without pause. The crash sent shock waves around the world- London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Paris, Frankfurt - all saw massive declines in the days that followed. For a few terrifying hours, many feared the entire global financial system might freeze or collapse.