The S&P 500 hit record highs in August 2020 despite the economic downturn. Pop quiz: what caused the Great Depression in 1929? Answering with “the stock market crash” can be tempting, but the correct answer is more complex than that. Economic historians usually cite rising bank loans and speculation, higher interest rates, agricultural complications, and public panic as factors, but most people just remember Black Tuesday as an all-encompassing, shorthand explanation. Many consider stock market performance as a representation of economic performance. Read the full article