An assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13, 2024, is a leading headline for the stock markets to open the week and comes ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
Here's a look back at how stock markets react to assassination attempts and deaths of former presidents and whether exchanges closed.
Reagan Assassination Attempt, JFK Assassination Market Impact: The assassination attempt on Trump marks the first on a president or former president since 1981.
On March 30, 1981, John Hinckley Jr. shot at President Ronald Reagan in Washington D.C. The shooting wounded Reagan and several others, but ultimately the president survived.
The shooting took place on a Monday during market hours. Shortly after the news spread, the New York Stock Exchange closed early at 3:17 p.m. ET and the American Stock Exchange closed at 3:18 p.m. ET. Other regional stock exchanges and the over-the-counter markets stopped trading.
Before closing early, the stock market traded lower according to the New York Times. Stocks had been trading higher on the day until news circulated that Reagan was wounded in the attack.
Bache Halsey Stuart Shields Vice President Charles Comer said at the time that news of Reagan being stable could "help mitigate any further softness in stock prices when trading resumes."
The stock market resumed activities the next day on March 31, 1981, with the S&P 500 up 1% and the 10-year Treasury yields fell nine basis points, according to data from Bloomberg.
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 22, 1963. The event happened on a Friday and markets remained open for around 30 minutes after news of the attack spread. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 21.16 points before closing early at 2:07 p.m. ET.
This marked a sizable drop of 2.9% compared to the day's opening price of 732.65.
The stock markets remained closed on Monday, Nov. 25, 1963, before reopening the Tuesday after the shooting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 32.03 points on that day, erasing losses from the trading after news of Kennedy being shot.
Stock Exchange Closes Related To World Events, Presidents: The major stock exchanges regularly close early for national holidays throughout the year and are also impacted by unplanned world and national events.
As mentioned above, the stock markets closed early when both Kennedy and Reagan were shot. The stock market closed for one full day after Kennedy's death before reopening on the Tuesday following the shooting that happened on a Friday.
The stock market closed for a week after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865.
Kennedy's funeral was Monday, November 25, 1963. For a long time, markets have traditionally been closed for the funerals of former presidents and major world leaders.
One exception to the rule was Dec. 29, 2006, when former President Gerald R. Ford was laid to rest. The funeral for Ford fell on the last day of trading for the year and markets were concerned about one less day of trading for traders, as reported by Marketplace.
"Historically, the market closes in a national day of mourning when a president dies. But you can't close on Friday because it's the last day of the year," business analyst David Johnson told Marketplace at the time. "Everybody's doing their last-minute 401(k) contributions and selling for tax losses and stuff like that."
As a compromise the stock exchanges were closed on Tuesday, Jan. 2 for a day of mourning for Ford. This marked a rare four-day stretch of days the market was closed.
Other major events that have shut down the stock exchanges include world wars, celebrating the moon landing and major natural disasters such as hurricanes.
The stock market never opened on Sept. 11, 2001, when terrorists attacked the city. A plane hitting the World Trade Center's North Tower saw the market delaying its open. After the South Tower was hit by a second plane, the market opening was canceled.
The market would stay closed until Sept. 17, marking one of the longest closures of the last 50 years.
Reaction to Trump Assassination Attempt: The attack on Trump comes as the former president is the leading candidate in the 2024 presidential election according to most polls, sportsbooks and prediction markets.
With Trump surviving and support rallying, investors may turn to stocks and sectors that could benefit from the former president returning to the White House.
Bitcoin traded higher after the assassination attack. The leading cryptocurrency has reacted positively to Trump-related events in recent months with the former president showing support for the cryptocurrency sector.
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The S&P 500, which is tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust
The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF
