Image from Time.

You may have heard the phrase “Bull market” when the Stock exchange is going up.

Then there’s “Bear Market” when stocks are heading south.

Right now we seem to be in a”Kangaroo Market” where the markets are wildly jumping all over the place.

After some great rises in recent days, stock markets Thursday lead off like lead balloon.

The Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index fell 3.9% before noon. The NASDAQ and the Dow Jones Industrial average fared similarly, dropping 5.2% and 3.68% respectively by close.

Our neighbors across the pond are facing similar economic downturn– London’s FTSE 100 index ended the day down 4.5% and Germany’s Dax lost 5.8%. The possible causes are numerous and range from gas prices rising 4.7% to rampant concern over a return of the dreaded r-word…recession.

The Economist has helpfully pointed out, however, that market falls do not necessarily indicate recession, and frequently occur in the midst of economic recovery.

Does this kind of drop bode well for the U.S. economy? We certainly hope so.