People around the world watched Barack Obama’s inauguration on
Tuesday with anticipation and hope, but  the stock market took a
bleaker view, with the major U.S. indices down more than four
percent, the biggest-ever inauguration day stock market decline.
The stock market has historically fallen during inaugurations.
The chart below, with an average 0.55 percent decline, shows the
Dow’s performance during planned inaugurations days since 1897;
it does not include unplanned inaugurations after a president’s
death. Republican inaugurations are in red, Democrats in blue.
Do you have an explanation for the market’s behavior? Leave your
answer in the comments section.