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Year of the Bear

October 13, 2008 on 6:00 pm | In IdBlog, Spin | Add a Comment

It’s been a frightening few weeks for people with some money in the market. Each new day brought precipitous sell-offs that erased thousands in putative value from 401k plans. Economists went from debating whether or not we were actually in a recession to guessing how long the panic might last.

Over the weekend, The New York Times’ interactive team provided some much-needed perspective with this concise infographic comparing the Panic of ‘08 to other downturns. This data-driven Flash chart shows percentage loss in value for the S&P 500 (adjusted for inflation) and duration of the bear markets over the last 80 years.

Investors can take some comfort in learning that this year’s market isn’t nearly as deep as the Crash of ‘29, which wiped out 80 percent of the market’s value, or as long at the bear market of 1937-42, which dragged on for 5 years.

Although, 9 of the 12 downturns charted lasted longer than the bear market of 2008 has so far.