In the 1929 stock market crash, how much wealth was wiped out?

Question

Note: I'm not asking for the percent decline in the index, I'm asking for (the dollar value of the market after the crash) divided by (the dollar value of the market before the crash).

So if I had bought every last share of stock in the market before the crash, and sold them all after, what percent would I be down?

Answer 1

It was an 85% decline. That is the dollar amount also.

What you're asking for is the dollar amount of the stock market at that time, then you would already know how much it was after the crash. You can do simple math, correct?

The day of the crash was a big decline, but nothing compared to the three years that followed. Which time frame do you prefer? Black Monday was also followed by Black Tuesday. How about the Black Thursday preceeding? Your question is not precise enough for a precise answer.

The weeks and months leading up to October 28, 1929 was a time of cheap interest rates, unstable margin rates, and speculative frenzy.

The "wealth" you refer to was mostly paper profits, not money. It seems you are using a TV Talking Head to define your terms. Money in the banks also got wiped out during the Great Depression, but not on the day you are referrring to. And how much "wealth" was obtained on margin (borrowed) prior to Black Monday? How much was short? As it stands, your question is really irrelevant.

One day is a flash in the pan. How much wealth was wiped out in the Great Depression that followed? Now, what about worldwide? That was the biggest wipeout of wealth in the history of mankind, and let's hope it's never repeated.

Answer 2

Excerpt from the link below:

Stocks lost nearly $16 billion in the month of October or 18% of the beginning of the month value. Twenty-nine public utilities (tabulated by the New York Times) lost $5.1 billion in the month, by far the largest loss of any of the industries listed by the Times. The value of the stocks of all public utilities went down by more than $5.1 billion.