The Dow just had its third-worst point drop ever

The Dow Jones Industrial Average just experienced its third-worst point drop in history.

The Dow plummeted over 800 points Wednesday, or over 3 percent, falling below 26,000 for the first time in a month, per CNN. It was the third worst point drop in the Dow's history, though not even close in percentage terms due to the index's size. As a percentage, the drop was only the worst in eight months, CNN's Vaughn Sterling reports.

The S&P 500 also tumbled over 3 percent while the Nasdaq fell over 4 percent. Technology stocks were hit with some of the deepest selloffs, with Amazon and Netflix falling over 6 percent and 8 percent respectively, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Analysts blamed the drop on fears that rising interest rates, trade tensions between the U.S. and China, and dips in housing and automotive sales could spell trouble for the U.S. economy. The CBOE Volatility Index, sometimes referred to as the "market fear index," also rose to its highest point in about six months, CNBC reports.