Trading paused as the S&P 500 plunged more than 7 percent in the first minutes after the opening bell.
The Dow Jones and Nasdaq were also down sharply, and the price of U.S. crude oil fell by more than 30 percent amid tensions between Saudi Arabia and Russia.
DePauw University Professor of Economics Gary Lemon says Indiana companies shouldn’t be affected unless it triggers a recession.
“You know it’s already had an impact," Lemon says. "There are conventions that have been canceled in Indianapolis and those hotels now will not have people in it and that’s what the real impact is.”
These changes in the economy can affect people with retirement accounts such as a 401k.
“For most people, if they have money in the market, it’s probably in a retirement account. Unless you’re going to retire this year it probably doesn’t make any difference.”
Lemon advises people to invest in the long term.
"Don’t panic," he says. "This is a bump in the road. It’s a pretty big bump, but it’s a bump in the road. You should be investing for the long term, not the short term.”
