Black Thursday actually ended with an
inspiring rally. Friday and Saturday - trading ceased only on
Sundays - witnessed an upswing followed by mild profit taking. The
market dropped 12.8 percent on Monday, with Winston Churchill
watching from the visitors' gallery - incurring a loss of $10-14
billion.
The Wall Street Journal warned naive investors:
"Many are looking for technical corrective reactions from time to
time, but do not expect these to disturb the upward trend for any
prolonged period."
The market plummeted another 11.7 percent the next day - though
trading ended with an impressive rally from the lows. October 31 was
a good day with a "vigorous, buoyant rally from bell to bell". Even
Rockefeller joined the myriad buyers. Shares soared. It seemed that
the worst was over.
The New York Times was optimistic:
"It is thought that stocks will become stabilized at their actual
worth levels, some higher and some lower than the present ones, and
that the selling prices will be guided in the immediate future by
the worth of each particular security, based on its dividend record,
earnings ability and prospects. Little is heard in Wall Street these
days about 'putting stocks up.'"
But it was not long before irate customers began blaming their
stupendous losses on advice they received from their brokers.
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