October 29 is the 90th anniversary of the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression. While we're not saying a crash is coming by any means, it is interesting to take a look and compare then and now. Related reading: 8 of the worst market calls since 1929 After all, we've had a taste of dives in the market that have led to speculation (mostly verbal, although there's probably a fair amount of investment speculation going on as well) about what might happen if the market tanked again—for real. Related reading: Try our quiz on the history of employee benefits And it's not such a crazy notion, optimists notwithstanding: There are a number of similarities between market and economic behaviors prior to the crash in 1929 and echoing events over the last several months. The gallery above offers a look at some of them, with explanations and sources. And the short list, minus explanations and sources, is below. 7. Economic inequality is at an all-time high. 6. Trade wars. 5. Rise of authoritarianism and populism. 4. The CAPE Ratio is higher than it was before the crash in 1929. 3. Plunge followed by new highs. 2. Rate hike cycle paused. 1. Long-term unemployment. READ MORE: |

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