Stock market numbers are seen on the New York Stock Exchange during afternoon trading in New York City, January 22, 2024.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed the $38,000 mark for the first time on Monday, just 40 calendar days after the previous milestone.
The round number threshold is the latest in a series of milestones on Wall Street, which saw the S&P 500 hit a new all-time high last week, confirming a new bull market.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's 1,000-point milestone serves as a brief history of Wall Street.
The average number of days between 1,000 point milestones has gotten shorter over time because the rate of increase required to reach a new level has decreased. That gap is especially small during major market rallies, when the Dow may gain several new levels in quick succession.
For example, during the pandemic-era market rally that gained momentum in the second half of 2020, the Dow broke through the 7,000-point barrier in less than 12 months.
Distance between Dow milestones in calendar days
| level | date | Days between 1K levels |
| 1000 | November 14, 1972 | — |
| the year of 2000 | January 8, 1987 | 5168 |
| 3000 | 1991/4/17 | 1560 |
| 4000 | 1995/2/23 | 1408 |
| 5000 | 1995/11/21 | 271 |
| 6000 | 1996/10/14 | 328 |
| 7000 | February 13, 1997 | 122 |
| 8000 | 1997/7/16 | 153 |
| 9000 | April 6, 1998 | 264 |
| 10000 | March 29, 1999 | 357 |
| 11000 | May 3, 1999 | 35 |
| 12000 | October 19, 2006 | 2726 |
| 13000 | April 25, 2007 | 188 |
| 14000 | July 19, 2007 | 85 |
| 15000 | May 7, 2013 | 2119 |
| 16000 | November 21, 2013 | 198 |
| 17000 | July 3, 2014 | 224 |
| 18000 | 2014/12/23 | 173 |
| 19000 | November 22, 2016 | 700 |
| 20000 | January 25, 2017 | 64 |
| 21000 | March 1, 2017 | 35 |
| 22000 | August 2, 2017 | 154 |
| 23000 | 2017/10/18 | 77 |
| 24000 | 2017/11/30 | 43 |
| 25000 | January 4, 2018 | 35 |
| 26000 | January 17, 2018 | 13 |
| 27000 | 2019/11/7 | 540 |
| 28000 | 2019/11/15 | 127 |
| 29000 | January 15, 2020 | 61 |
| 30000 | 2020/11/24 | 314 |
| 31000 | January 7, 2021 | 44 |
| 32000 | March 10, 2021 | 62 |
| 33000 | March 17, 2021 | 7 |
| 34000 | April 15, 2021 | 29 |
| 35000 | July 23, 2021 | 99 |
| 36000 | November 2, 2021 | 102 |
| 37000 | December 13, 2023 | 771 |
| 38000 | January 22, 2024 | 40 |
When the Dow rose above 37,000 on December 13, it marked a new 1,000-point mark for the first time in 771 days. Since that date, insurance giants Travelers and Merck have seen the biggest increases in average value, according to FactSet.
Although the Dow Jones Industrial Average is price-weighted and consists of just 30 stocks and is not considered the best representation of the U.S. stock market, it has historical significance on Wall Street.
