Uncertainty had been hanging over the markets because of the unprecedented refusal of the outgoing president, Donald Trump, to concede the election to President-elect Biden. When Trump began the transition process late in November, 2020, stocks roared back. The following are some milestones achieved by the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
The Dow’s Historic Highs
It hit a low of 41.22 in 1932 (about 908 points, inflation-adjusted). The highest intraday level was just above 45,100 on December 4, 2024, before closing at 45,014.04. The highest closing value ever for the Dow Jones is 45,014.04, set on December 4, 2024. The Dow has hit milestone after milestone—climbing from 1,000 points to over 45,000 in less than 50 years.
Dow 30 Companies (with Sector & Stock Price Example*)
The highest closing value ever for the Dow is 45,631.74, set on August 22, 2025. Previously, the Dow had fallen from 11,723 in January 2000 to 9,389 in March 2001, dropping 20% (from 20,520 to 16,434 points, inflation-adjusted). The bout of inflation that followed the COVID-19 pandemic led to another sharp sell-off in 2022. Between Jan. 7, 2022, and Sept. 30, 2022, the Dow declined about 21% from 36,231.66 to 28,725.51. Perhaps the most infamous trough was during the Great Depression, in which the Dow lost about 90% of its value over three years.
Quick Table: DJIA vs. S&P 500 vs. Nasdaq Composite — 2025 YTD Returns
As of August 2025, the Dow is up +9.5% year-to-date, while the S&P 500 has gained +13.2% and the Nasdaq +15.4%. Tech-heavy Nasdaq leads global markets thanks to strong performance in AI and semiconductor stocks. The Dow’s new record above 45,600 in August 2025 comes from a mix of strong earnings, cooling inflation, and investor optimism about future Fed policy.
In parentheses, when helpful, we provide the Dow’s points as inflation-adjusted to Feb. 23, 2024, for a relative comparison to its record highs. Stocks with higher prices (like UnitedHealth or Goldman Sachs) have more impact on the index than lower-priced stocks, even if they’re smaller companies. The close was just shy of a previous record close of 40,003 set on May 17.
Timeline of Key Milestones
Investors worried that China’s yuan devaluation and the uncertainty over the Fed’s rate increase would push the index further downward. The Dow responded with new highs throughout the latter part of 2019, even though trade negotiations had broken down until November. It hit a milestone on July 11, closing above 27,000, and then another on Nov. 15, closing above 28,000 (in the chart below, milestones are noted). Although the DJIA is currently at an all-time high, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. For example, during the Great Depression in the 1930s, the Dow dropped dramatically, losing nearly 90% of its value.
This history of the Dow since the Great Depression demonstrates how stock market fluctuations reflect the natural stages of the business cycle. Intraday highs show the peak value during the trading session, but the “record close” at 45,631.74 on August 22 is the official all-time high most investors track. The Dow Jones is a price-weighted index—this means the 30 companies with the highest stock prices move the Dow the most, not the biggest by market cap. We’ve included a few key shocks to the stock markets along these timelines in addition to the presidents who were in office.
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average is one of the many gauges of stock market performance.
- On Wednesday, panicky bankers withdrew $144 billion from money market funds, almost causing a collapse.
- Intraday highs show the peak value during the trading session, but the “record close” at 45,631.74 on August 22 is the official all-time high most investors track.
- The Dow was volatile in 2015 because it was based on just a few companies.
Learn more about what a prop firm is and how it can help you trade bigger during record-breaking market cycles. The Dow hit record highs in 2024–2025 thanks to a perfect storm of strong earnings, lower inflation, and huge gains from mega-cap tech stocks. Another crucial factor that affects the Dow’s performance is market psychology and investor sentiment. The stock market is influenced by emotions, and investor behavior can significantly impact stock prices.
A record high doesn’t mean the market will only go up or that it’s time to panic. These funds track the DJIA through a similar composition and weighting of stocks. The Dow tracks 30 large, publicly owned blue-chip companies trading on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. The selection is not based on strict quantitative criteria but rather on the decisions of the editors of the Wall Street Journal. Companies are chosen based on their reputation, growth, and relevance to the economy, with the aim of reflecting the overall health and trends of the industrial sector of the U.S. economy. Confidence that a recession could be averted continued into 2024.
The highest the Dow has ever been, as of current year, stands at highest value. This milestone represents a significant achievement for the stock market and the overall economy. Conversely, an encouraging drop in inflation reported earlier this week helped to fuel this latest rally. Consumer prices rose 3.4% from last April – a decline from March’s 3.5% annual increase. The CME FedWatch Tool shows investors still expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates twice by the end of the year.
That is the second-fastest rise in U.S. history (currently, the record is 24 sessions to go from 10,000 to 21,000 in 1999). The Dow Jones Industrial Average (the Dow) is an index of the 30 top-performing U.S. companies. The most recent all-time-high record (as of this writing) was on Jan. 4, 2022, when it closed at 36,799.65.
The DJIA is a price-weighted stock index made up of 30 major U.S. companies. It’s one of the most-watched indicators of the stock market’s overall health. The Dow’s activity broke new records in terms of downward movement in 2009. While it wasn’t as dramatic as the Great Depression, the drop happened much more quickly. After recovering from its Great Depression level, the Dow continued to be affected by several recessionary periods and crises leading up to the 2009 downturn. That correction was more than 16% lower than its all-time high set in May of the same year, putting the index into a correction but not a bear market.
- Lower interest rates generally stimulate economic activity, making it more attractive for businesses and investors.
- After hitting the Jan. 26 peak, the Dow went into free fall, dropping 4% the next week.
- Join MasterFunders today and start your trading career with real backing.
- Journalist Charles Dow and his business partner, Edward Jones, established the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 1896 with 12 companies in the industrial sector.
- At MasterFunders, funded traders can test strategies in rising markets without risking personal savings, trading with firm capital instead of their own.
While the 40,000 milestone is attention-grabbing, the number itself means little to investors. Here’s a look at each period where the Dow Jones industrial average doubled since the index topped 1250 for the first time in September 1983. The Dow Jones Industrial average has doubled every 8.1 years, or 2,969 days, since 1983. Before that, it took more than 24 years for the index to double from 625 in the spring of 1959 to September 1983. These big, round numbers don’t mean much, but they do serve as a reminder that over time stock investments can pay off. The S&P 500 has returned about 10.6% annually for the past 100 years, according to analysis from Trade That Swing.
The S&P 500, Nasdaq, Nikkei, and DAX all set records in 2025 too, fueled by strong tech earnings and hopes of lower rates. But the historic peak was delayed by strong economic news, an upturn in March inflation data and statements from Fed officials suggesting interest-rate cuts wouldn’t be coming soon. On that day, it closed at 7,286.27, a 37.8% decline from its peak. No one knew if a new bull market had begun until the Dow hit a higher low on March 11, 2003, closing at 7,524.06.
Over time, the Dow expanded to include 30 of the largest U.S. companies, which better reflect the changing economy. Different indices reflect different trading styles, short-term Nasdaq rallies mirror day trading vs swing trading strategies in practice. It hit an all-time high of 34,200.67 points on Apr. 16, 2021.
While there are always pullbacks, the Dow has set new records after every major correction for over 100 years. See the top 10 highest closing values in Dow Jones history, including the record-breaking 45,014.04 set on December 4, 2024. Shares for most of the firms tracked by Dow rose in value on Friday, led by Intel (4.7%), IBM (2.8%) and Home Depot (2.6%), while shares for Walmart, Boeing and JPMorgan Chase fell slightly. “40,000 is a great milestone, but end of the day there mergers acquisitions book isn’t much difference between 39,999 and 40k,” Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, said in a statement emailed Thursday. The Dow Jones industrial average finished above 40,000 for the first time on Friday afternoon, doubling where the index hit shortly after Donald Trump became the 45th president. The easiest way to invest in the Dow may be to buy shares in State Street Global Advisors’ SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust, which trades under the ticker symbol DIA.
What causes the Dow to reach new highs?
During periods of optimism, investors are more likely to buy stocks, driving the Dow higher. Conversely, during times of uncertainty or fear, investors may sell their stocks, leading to a decline in the Dow. The records set in the fall were the first ones since the Dow reached 26,616.71 on Jan. 26, 2018. After hitting the Jan. 26 peak, the Dow went into free fall, dropping 4% the next week.
