What happened last time? › Commodities
What happens after oil falls 30% in three months?
It has happened 14 times since 1960. A year after it began, the S&P 500 was up 10 of 13 times, with a median move of +17.2%. On an ordinary day in the same years the median was +10.5%, up 75% of the time.
Crude oil (WTI) down more than 30% over 3 months. Not true on 2026-09-25.
What came next
| 1 month later | 1 year later | 3 years later | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | +0.4% 57% up · n 14 · normal +1.1% | +17.2% 77% up · n 13 · normal +10.5% | +36.2% 85% up · n 13 · normal +27.9% |
| Gold | -0.0% 50% up · n 14 · normal 0.0% | +5.8% 69% up · n 13 · normal +3.0% | +12.5% 92% up · n 13 · normal +10.6% |
| Oil | +4.5% 57% up · n 14 · normal 0.0% | +18.3% 69% up · n 13 · normal 0.0% | +43.5% 69% up · n 13 · normal +9.2% |
| 10-year yield (pts) | +0.06 pts 64% up · n 14 · normal 0.00 pts | 0.00 pts 46% up · n 13 · normal +0.06 pts | +0.14 pts 54% up · n 13 · normal -0.05 pts |
| Inflation, CPI y/y (pts) | -0.16 pts 36% up · n 14 · normal -0.00 pts | -1.13 pts 31% up · n 13 · normal +0.04 pts | +0.38 pts 62% up · n 13 · normal +0.04 pts |
| Unemployment rate (pts) | -0.05 pts 29% up · n 14 · normal 0.00 pts | -0.20 pts 46% up · n 13 · normal -0.30 pts | +0.10 pts 54% up · n 13 · normal -0.70 pts |
Median move after each episode began, how often it rose, and how many episodes had data. "Normal" is the same move from any trading day in the same years.
Every time it happened
- 2026-06-26 · true for 7 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: –
- 2022-09-07 · true for 4 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +11.8%
- 2020-07-20 · true for 1 trading day · S&P 500 a year later: +32.9%
- 2020-03-06 · true for 57 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +29.3%
- 2018-12-18 · true for 14 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +25.3%
- 2016-01-07 · true for 20 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +17.2%
- 2015-08-19 · true for 6 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +5.2%
- 2014-11-28 · true for 55 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +1.1%
- 2008-09-16 · true for 96 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: -11.9%
- 2001-11-15 · true for 15 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: -20.3%
- 2000-12-20 · true for 1 trading day · S&P 500 a year later: -9.9%
- 1998-12-21 · true for 4 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +19.2%
- 1990-12-24 · true for 37 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +21.0%
- 1986-02-03 · true for 59 trading days · S&P 500 a year later: +29.0%
- 14 separate episodes: a new one starts after 30 days without a match, so one long selloff counts once.
- Try enough situations and one will look like an edge by chance.
- Macro numbers are as published at the time. Stocks include companies that later died.
- How these numbers are made.
More about commodities
- What happens after oil rises 50% in a year?
- What happens after oil doubles in a year?
- What happens after oil rises 30% in three months?
- What happens after oil falls 50% in six months?
- What happens when oil hits an all-time high?
- What happens after gold rises 50% in a year?
- What happens after gold doubles in a year?
- What happens after gold rises 30% in three months?