The Dow Jones Index fell almost 400 points on Thursday

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Extremely insane for American stockbrokers, the first week of the year deepened on Thursday, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell to the 392 point. Thus, US funds fell by 5% already in the first days of 2016.

Among other things, the index covering the 30 largest US companies was affected by a 4% fall in shares of Boeing, but components in other sectors - from oil and technology to banking - also showed negative movement.

Shares of JPMorgan Chase, GE, Chevron and Apple have fallen by 3% or more. And only for the retailer Wal-Mart, the manager of the world's largest retail chain, the figures were positive.

Fears related to the growing economic problems of China and the unexpected decision of the People’s Bank of China to sharply lower the rate RMB on Wednesday, sowed panic in financial markets.

After the official RMB exchange rate was set at 6,5 per dollar (0,5% lower than it was the day before), China’s stock market collapsed and trading was suspended until the end of the day. Other Asian markets were also in the red.

American billionaire financier George Soros says that the current situation in stock markets is close to what it was during the global economic crisis of 2008. According to Soros, this is a “serious challenge” for the world's leading economies.

Other major investors also expressed their concerns on Thursday. Thus, Jeffrey Gundblach, who is called the “investment king” in the USA, in an interview The Wall Street Journal questioned the December Fed decision raise interest rate on federal funds.

The Dow Jones index, according to economists, suggests that weakness in asset and currency markets will increase. The main trend now is the flight from risky assets. If the US stock market continues to fall, a further fall will be noticeable in many other currencies.

It should also be noted the continuing fall in oil prices, which on Wednesday hit a low since 2004. Investors are concerned about the growth of its excess supply, since it is expected that the weakening of the Chinese economy will slow down the growth of global GDP, while the major oil producers do not plan to reduce its production.