This Day In Market History: 1980s Bull Market Begins

Each day, Benzinga takes a look back at a notable market-related moment that occurred on this date.

What Happened? On this day in 1982, the great bull market of the 1980s began.

Where The Market Was: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 869.29 and the S&P 500 traded at 113.02.

What Else Was Going On In The World? In 1982, Michael Jackson released his “Thriller” album, and the first CD player was sold in Japan. The average American earned $21,050 per year.

Bull Market Begins: On Aug. 20, 1982, the Dow gained 3.66%, capping off a week where the index rose 10%. Not only were share prices soaring, but buyers were also flooding the market with orders, driving record-high trading volume on the New York Stock Exchange. NYSE volume on August 20 was 95.9 million shares, and the total trading volume for the full week was 455.1 million shares.

Optimism on Wall Street was driven in part by the passage of President Reagan’s $98.3 billion tax bill. Reagan said at the time he intended to reduce interest rates and promote economic growth.

Over the next year, the down would gain another 42.4%. The bull market would end in 1987, but over the 20 years following that big week in August 1982, the Dow gained more than 1,000%.