Milestones Of The Dow Industrials
In one year -- 2007 -- the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s broke through three milestones: 12,000, 13,000 and 14,000. The move from 12,000 to 13,000 took a little more than six months and is the index's biggest move in the shortest amount of time since the glory days from the turn of the century when the market was seemingly unstoppable.
After that day in late April, the Dow sprinted to 14,000 in mid July. Many thought the party had ended there, as concerns about a credit crunch kicked in, taking the index back below 13,000 for a brief time. But the setback was short-lived, and the Dow bounched back to new highs above 14,000 in late September and early October. On Oct. 5, the index hit a new intraday high of 14,123.80, after notching a record close of 14,087.55 on Oct. 1.
Here’s a look at some other milestones.
November 1972 – The Dow breaks 1000 for the first time.
Shortly after the re-election of Richard Nixon, the blue-chip index closes at 1003.16. Within months, the worst bear market in half a century will begin, with the Dow losing 40% of its value at one point.
November 1980 – The Dow finally regains the 1000 following the presidential election of Ronald Reagan.
January 1987 – The Dow closes above 2000 for the first time.
October 1987 – The Dow “crashes”, closing at 1738.74
Days later the Dow is back above 2,000, but it will takes year for the blue-chip index to hit another milestone.
April 1991 – Following the end of the first Gulf War, the Dow closes above 3,000
February 1995 – The Dow breaks 4,000, thus beginning another major leg in the decade-long rally.
November 1995 – The Dow closes above 5,000
October 1996 – The Dow breaks 6,000.
Two months later Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan will warn of irrational exuberance.
April 1997 – The blue chip hits 7,000.
July 1997 – The 8,000-level is breached.
April 1998 – The Dow ends above 9,000.
March 1999 – The once-unthinkable 10,000 is reached.
May 1999 – The 11,000 is reached for the first time.
The market then begins a retreat, closing bellowing 10,000 in February 2000
January 2000 – The Dow hits its then record high of 11,722.98 – a record that would stand for some six years.
February 2000 – The market retreats back below 10,000
March 2000 – The Dow rallies back to close above 11,000
After that it will be a painful grind lower for 2 ½ years as the first bear market in 25 years kicks in.
September 2002 – The Dow bottoms out at 7701.45
December 2003 - The Dow reclaims the 10,000 level.
January 2006 – The Dow regains the 11,000 level.
October 3, 2006 – The Dow breaks its previous record close, ending at 11,850.21.
October 19, 2006 – The market closes above 12,000 for the first time.
April 20, 2007 – The 13,000-level is breached intraday.
April 25, 2007 - The index closes above 13,000.
June 4, 2007 - In a dizzying six weeks of gains, the Dow appears to hits one record high after the next, peaking on this day with a closing level of 13,676.32.
July 12, 2007 -- The Dow jumps almost 300 points, posting its biggest single-day percentage gain since October 2003, to end at 13,861.73.
July 17, 2007 -- The Dow trades above 14,000 for the first time but can't hold all of its gain, closing about 30 points below the key level.