On August 2, 2013, the Dow had a new record closing of 15,658.43, prompting media outlets to offer breathtaking stories on how we hit a record Dow.
As a financial advisor, I feel good on these days—like a genius. I feel like I’ve done good work for my clients. Of course, I know that I have nothing to do with market movements, and my clients aren’t just invested in a Dow index. So, I calmed down, sat and reflected on this record breaking event, feeling déjà vu. I know I’d heard something like this before.
We’ve Been Here Before
In fact, I remembered hearing about a record Dow not long ago. Quite a few times in fact. To satisfy my curiosity, my crack team of analysts put together the following bits of trivia about the Dow and its many record days.
Since May 26, 1896, there have been 1,227 record Dow days, which is almost 4% of the total market days. So, in an average year, you’ll hear about a record Dow a little more than once a month.
Many Record Days for the Dow
Of course, not every decade is equal. The 1930s and the 1940s had no record Dow days, and the 1990s had over 25% of the total record days.
| Decade | Number of Record Days | % of Market Days |
|---|---|---|
| 1890s | 83 | 3.19% |
| 1900s | 44 | 1.69% |
| 1910s | 25 | 0.96% |
| 1920s | 214 | 8.23% |
| 1930s | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940s | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1950s | 141 | 5.42% |
| 1960s | 143 | 5.50% |
| 1970s | 16 | 0.62% |
| 1980s | 161 | 6.19% |
| 1990s | 310 | 11.92% |
| 2000s | 60 | 2.31% |
| 2010s | 30 | 3.22% |
Someone else in our office wanted to see how long it took the Dow to double. If you’re interested, the longest time it took for the Dow to double was 30 years, and the shortest was a little over two years, from June 1985 to August 1987.
| Closing Price | Date Reached | Time to Double (Years) |
|---|---|---|
| 81.88 | 4/5/1905 | 8.8 |
| 163.76 | 8/6/1926 | 21.4 |
| 327.52 | 6/26/1929 | 2.9 |
| 655.04 | 7/6/1959 | 30.0 |
| 1,310.08 | 5/31/1985 | 25.9 |
| 2,620.16 | 8/10/1987 | 2.2 |
| 5,240.32 | 1/24/1996 | 8.5 |
| 10,480.64 | 4/16/1999 | 3.2 |
| 20,961.28 | Halfway there! | 14.3 and counting |
Curiosity satisfied, I let go the excitement of yet another record Dow.
Now I know that hearing about all these record days is just noise. I think it’s time for me to turn off that noise and start listening to the noise of the birds outside, the surf crashing and my kids playing. Errrr … hey kids, don’t touch that skunk!
