Noted, from Charles Pennington
The 94 point up move from 1pm to 4pm yesterday was the biggest magnitude 3 hour move of either sign, by a long shot, since the start of 2008 (and probably further back; I didn't check).
The second, third, fifth, and tenth biggest magnitude 3-hour moves were also up, not down moves. The biggest 3 hour down move was only 67 points, on October 9.
But these big up moves don't sit as prominently in our memories, and I hear no one rushing to say that markets rise faster than they fall!
Top 10 magnitude 3-hour moves in ES:
move date time (end of move)
73.75 10/28/2008 1600
94.25 11/132008 1600
72.75 9/18/2008 1550
-67.5 10/9/2008 1615
64.75 1/23/2008 1550
54.75 10/10/2008 1540
-52.75 10/15/2008 1610
-51 10/23/2008 1420
-50.25 9/29/2008 1530
49.5 10/13/2008 1615