Dow clinches its worst September start since 2008 as history repeats itself

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has recorded its worst start to September in 18 years, marking its weakest first 10 trading days of the month since the 2008 global financial crisis. Concurrently, both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite logged their poorest 10-day September starts since 2020, reaffirming the historical reputation of September as the consistently weakest calendar month for U.S. equities across historical datasets. Market analysts note that the current downturn is driven by multiple compounding macroeconomic headwinds rather than seasonality alone. Surging crude oil prices and rising long-term Treasury yields have heightened inflationary concerns and weighed on corporate valuation multiples, while investor caution surrounding artificial intelligence and anticipated Federal Reserve interest-rate policy actions has further amplified downside pressure. Looking ahead, market strategists caution that despite underlying resilience in consumer income and the labor market, tightening monetary conditions and elevated energy costs are likely to sustain a higher regime of market volatility across risk assets in the near term.