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Dow Jones Industrial Average
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Dow Jones Industrial Average

stock market
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is a stock market index that tracks the performance of 30 large, publicly traded U.S. companies. It's one of the most commonly used indicators of general stock market trends in the United States.1

The DJIA was first computed in 1896 by Charles Henry Dow and Edward D. Jones, founders of Dow Jones & Company. Initially, it included 12 stocks from key industries. Over time, the number of stocks and the calculation method have evolved, but it remains a price-weighted index, meaning stocks with higher prices have a greater influence.1

While the DJIA is widely recognized, the S&P 500 is often considered a more comprehensive measure of the U.S. stock market due to its broader base of 500 companies and market capitalization weighting.2

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4 Britannica Sources
  1. Dow Jones average
  2. DJIA
  3. the Dow-Jones Industrial Average
  4. S&P 500

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