Does terrorism move markets?
Patrick Aventurier/Getty Images
A common assumption is that the wall-to-wall news coverage and sometimes apocalyptic language surrounding terrorist attacks lead investors to panic and pull their money out of the market.
It’s true that, on occasion, horrific acts of terrorism have pushed the market down hard in the short term. For example, the first trading day after the 9/11 attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., the Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped nearly 5%. But following many international terrorist attacks, the S&P 500 has been close to flat or even up. On July 15, the day after the attack in Nice, France, that killed more than 80 people at a Bastille Day celebration, the index slipped 0.09%.
In a Bankrate survey, most people said acts of terror wouldn’t affect their investing.
Here’s how the S&P 500 performed after some of the most infamous terrorist attacks since 2001.
ADVISER SEARCH: Search today for a financial adviser in your area.
9/11 attacks, Sept. 11, 2001
BETH A. KEISER/AFP/Getty Images
New York and Washington, D.C.
- Killed: 2,974
- Injured: 6,000+
Madrid train bombings, March 11, 2004
Getty Images
Madrid
- Killed: 191
- Injured: 2,050
Beslan school siege, Sept. 1, 2004
MAXIM MARMUR/AFP/Getty Images
Beslan, Russia
- Killed: 385
- Injured: 783
ADVISER SEARCH: Search today for a financial adviser in your area.
London Underground bombings, July 7, 2005
Handout/Getty Images
London
- Killed: 56
- Injured: 700
Mumbai attacks, Nov. 26, 2008
The India Today Group/Getty Images
Mumbai, India
- Killed: 166
- Injured: 600
Boston Marathon bombing, April 15, 2013
Darren McCollester/Getty Images
Boston
- Killed: 5
- Injured: 280
ADVISER SEARCH: Search today for a financial adviser in your area.
Westgate shopping mall attack, Sept. 21, 2013
STR/AFP/Getty Images
Nairobi, Kenya
- Killed: 63
- Injured: 175
Ankara bombings, Oct. 10, 2015
Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Ankara, Turkey
- Killed: 109
- Injured: 400+
Paris attacks, Nov. 13, 2015
Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images
Paris
- Killed: 130
- Injured: 368
Brussels attacks, March 22, 2016
DIRK WAEM/AFP/Getty Images
Brussels
- Killed: 32
- Injured: 316
ADVISER SEARCH: Search today for a financial adviser in your area.
