A stunning fall and a recovery: How the stock market has evolved one year since Covid hit

A stunning fall and a recovery: How the stock market has evolved one year since Covid hit

A year after the pandemic forced the nation into a shutdown, the stock market has been overhauled in ways that Wall Street never imagined.Last March, stocks plunged as the world faced the frightening spread of a virus many had thought would never make its way to the United States. The S&P 500 lost more than 15% in a searing decline on March 11 and 12. The index plummeted more than 30% by March 23.Perhaps even more surprising than the fall was the market rebound that followed, powered by the twin booster engines of monetary and fiscal policy, including a rollout of programs from the Federal Reserve. The S&P 500 is up nearly 80% from the low that March and just hit a fresh record on Thursday."The policy response was meaningful and significant, and as a result prevented what could have been a far worse outcome," said Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citi.The virus was a great equalizer. Much of the country was learning to work and attend school from home. Meanwhile, restaurants, gyms and other places where people gathered were closed or changed dramatically.But America adapted, and so did investors.They ran up tech stocks that benefitted from a