A prolonged period of declining prices in a financial market, conventionally defined as a drop of 20% or more from recent highs in traditional markets. During a bear market, investor sentiment turns pessimistic, selling pressure dominates, and rallies tend to be short-lived and are often met with further selling. Bear markets can be triggered by economic recessions, tightening monetary policy, geopolitical crises, or the bursting of speculative bubbles, and they can last from several months to multiple years.
Example
“The crypto market entered a bear market in late 2022 when Bitcoin fell from its $69,000 all-time high to below $16,000, erasing trillions in market capitalization.”