Tomorrow is historically the single-worst day for US equities of the year. Here's why

<p>I would file this one under 'trivia' rather than 'tradeable' but since 1950, the single-worst day for owning stocks is October 19. The average decline over those 72 years is -0.51%, according Carson Investment Research.</p><p>Why?</p><p>When you look at this chart, the 19th-20th tends to show general softness, which might reflect some kind of monthly pattern of stock market flows in general.</p><p>But more broadly, it reflects a single day where stocks were crushed: Black Monday was October 19, 1987. The index fell 20.47% that day.</p><p>Two other October 19 selloffs also stand out: </p><ol><li>Oct 19, 2007 the index fell 2.56% as worries about the US housing market started to pick up at this time.</li><li>Oct 19, 2018 the index fell about 1% as part of a larger October downturn that saw a 7.3% decline, which was the worst October since the financial crisis. The market was worried about valuation, rate hikes and trade tensions with China at the time.</li></ol><p>Overall, the lesson here is probably 'be careful with averages' rather than 'be careful on October 19'. Here is the recent trading history of October 19:</p><p>Notably though, if we keep getting bond yields rising, the elements are in place for another brutal day for stock markets.</p>

This article was written by Adam Button at www.forexlive.com.