Here’s what’s been happening in markets this month

FILE - In this Sept. 18, 2014, file photo, trader Damian Bagarozza, center, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. On Sept. 18, the U.S. stock market was at a record high after a relatively uneventful summer. Long-term interest rates were heading higher, a sign that investors expected steady growth in the U.S. economy. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File) FILE - In this Sept. 18, 2014, file photo, trader Damian Bagarozza, center, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. On Sept. 18, the U.S. stock market was at a record high after a relatively uneventful summer. Long-term interest rates were heading higher, a sign that investors expected steady growth in the U.S. economy. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

By Associated Press October 18, 2014 3 min read

What a difference a month makes.

On Sept. 18, the U.S. stock market reached a record high after a mostly uneventful summer. Long-term interest rates headed higher, a sign that investors expected steady U.S. growth. A widely watched measure of volatility in the U.S. stock market was near its lowest level of the year, and European markets were heading higher after a nasty downturn over the summer. The price of crude oil was declining, but nothing like the sudden plunges that would come weeks later.

Here is a snapshot of key market signals and what they’ve shown over the last month and year to date.

S&P 500 INDEX

It’s been a bumpy ride for U.S. stocks in the last month, especially since Monday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index nearly went into “correction” on Wednesday, meaning a decline of 10 percent or more from a recent peak. The declines briefly wiped out the year-to-date gains for the index.