The S&P 500 index fell 3.9 percent in September and experienced the first ten percent correction – from the month’s intraday high to the intraday low – since the rally began in late March. Despite the decline, the S&P 500 gained 8.4 percent in the third quarter as economic momentum picked up, the Federal Reserve flooded the markets with liquidity, and the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) provided much needed stimulus.
However, the markets fell under pressure due to a host of issues including the slow progress on the second round of COVID relief, the looming presidential election, the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the expected political battle over filling her seat, and fear of a second wave of coronavirus shutdowns.