The Chinese government deployed troops to clear Tiananmen Square on June 3-4, 1989. Hong Kong's Hang Seng collapsed over 22% on the first trading day. The S&P 500 reaction was muted — the index was mid-recovery from the 1987 crash and finished 1989 up approximately 27% for the calendar year.
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ALAN INTELLIGENCE · alanglobalintelligence.com
ALAN IntelligenceData as of 2026-08-30
Bars: median S&P 500 forward return. Whiskers: 25th-75th percentile. n = 1 occurrences.
Based on 1 historical occurrences. Last triggered: 1989-06-04.
Past performance is not indicative of future results. This material is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer to buy or sell any security, or a recommendation. Data from publicly available sources believed to be reliable but not guaranteed. All investments involve risk, including possible loss of principal.
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ALAN GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE · alanglobalintelligence.comSource: S&P 500 daily closes · Generated 2026-08-30
Historical occurrencesshowing 1 of 1
Date
1M return
1Y return
5Y return
1989-06-05
-0.4%
+14.1%
+42.0%
What history says
Editorial commentary written by ALAN analysts. Figures cited below are analyst-authored context — they are not derived from the chart above and may reflect different windows or sources.
Proximity determined the magnitude of the shock
Hong Kong, facing imminent 1997 handover to China, lost over 22% in a single session. US equities showed minimal abnormal returns. Geographic and economic proximity dictated the reaction.
1989 established the template for authoritarian-crackdown responses
Markets price economic disruption, not moral outrage. Subsequent events — Hong Kong national security law (2020), Myanmar coup (2021) — followed the same pattern.
The S&P 500 recovered its 1987 crash high weeks later
The index reclaimed its pre-Black Monday high of 336.77 on July 26, 1989. The bull market's fundamental trajectory was unaltered.
For your portfolio
Proximity, not severity, drove the market response — Hong Kong repriced violently while US equities barely moved. The portfolio review this history suggests is geographic: know how much of your allocation sits close to any single political regime, because that exposure, not the headline, is what gets repriced.
For information and research only. Not investment advice. ALAN does not place trades or execute orders. Figures come from the sources shown and can lag the market; verify independently before making decisions. Past performance is not predictive of future results.
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ALAN is not a broker-dealer or investment advisor. All data is informational only and does not constitute investment advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.