Market Meltdown: Dow Plunges 349 Points as U.S. Equities Stumble to Start the Week
Wall Street's Monday blues hit hard—traditional markets tank while crypto stands firm.
Blood in the Streets
The Dow didn't just dip—it nosedived. Three hundred forty-nine points vanished as institutional traders scrambled for cover. Nasdaq and S&P followed suit, painting screens red from pre-market to close.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin barely flinched.
Decoupling Narrative Gains Steam
While boomer stocks bled, digital assets held key support levels. No frantic selling in crypto exchanges—just another day of 'number go up' technology doing its thing. Traditional finance panics; blockchain networks process transactions.
Another reminder: your 401(k) isn't hedging inflation—it's just praying the Fed cuts rates again.
Final thought: maybe losing 349 points is what happens when your entire system runs on quarterly reports and coffee breaks.
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The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 349 points to finish the day at 45,282.47. The Dow had closed at an all-time high the previous trading session. The benchmark S&P 500 index closed down 0.43% at 6,439.32. And the technology-heavy Nasdaq ended trading on Aug. 25 at 21,449.29, down 0.22%.
Many Dow components gave up the gains they achieved on Aug. 22 after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled that interest rate cuts are likely in the coming months. Dow stocks that sold off heavily on the day include American Express (AXP), Merck & Co, (MRK), and Boeing (BA).
Nvidia Earnings
The Q2 financial results of chipmaker Nvidia are on deck and they are likely to be the biggest market mover of the week. With a market capitalization of $4.39 trillion, Nvidia is the world’s biggest publicly traded company and a leading way for investors to play the artificial intelligence (AI) trade. Any disappointment from Nvidia’s earnings is sure to send the stock market lower.
Other news weighing on markets includes the U.S. government taking a 10% stake in Intel (INTC), as well as a new threat by President Donald TRUMP to impose 200% tariffs on China if the Asian nation doesn’t send rare earth magnets to America. There is also news that Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is buying Dutch coffee company JDE Peets (KL:JDEP) for $18 billion.
Is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust a Buy?
The SPDR S&P 500 exchange-traded fund (SPY) currently has a consensus Moderate Buy rating among 504 Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on 419 Buy, 79 Hold, and six Sell recommendations issued in the last three months. The average SPY price target of $716.75 implies 11.25% upside from current levels.
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