October ended as one of the worst months since the 2008 financial crisis. The S&P 500 lost $1.91 trillion in October. Losses were spread widely across industry sectors. October was the worst month for the S&P 500 since September 2011.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank is “a long way” from neutral interest rates. Powell said the Fed does not need the policies put in place that pulled the economy out of the last financial crisis. He declared that “we don’t need” the “really extremely accommodative low interest rates” the central bank put in place a decade ago. The Fed is likely to raise the federal funds rate to 3.4 percent before pausing, according to the most recent projections.
Big technology stocks — most well-known as FANG —Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet — were among the hardest hit. Amazon ended the month down 20.2 percent, and Netflix ended down 19.3 percent. Investors fled both after earnings reports. Facebook and Alphabet finished October down 7.7 percent and 9.7 percent, respectively.
FANG has lost $300 billion in market value since mid-September this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 13 days in October.