DJI: Dow Jones Flops a Day Before Win Streak Matches 14-Day Run from 1897

The blue-chip index was just one day away from rewriting history. In the olden days, the record shall stay.

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average got hit by nostalgia on Thursday. The heavyweight index was pacing hard to close another day in the green in an effort to cap a 14-day upwards run. It would’ve matched the Dow’s longest-ever streak of gains when it was just a 1-year-old baby in 1897.
• The Dow was launched in 1896 and consisted of 12 companies (more were added later to a total of 30 today). Those were the titans of the sprawling American industry including American Cotton Oil, American Tobacco, and American Sugar. The longest streak of 14 days back then included Saturday trading sessions, which dropped out in the 1950s.
• On the flip side, the stock average has had periods where it just wasn’t feeling it. The blue-chip benchmark’s longest losing streak is also 14 straight days, ended August 31, 1941. When it rolled out initially, the Dow was trading at 40.94 points. Is it time to say “if you invested $1,000 in the DJIA in 1896, here’s how much you’d have today?”