The Dow dropped to its lowest mark in five years, but even though that spelled bad news for investors, financial websites came out on top. On top of the
Nielsen//NetRatings traffic reports, that is. NetRatings, reported late last week that traffic to various financial news and investment websites skyrocketed
during the week ending July 28. Web surfers at home logged online to obtain the latest financial news and monitor their stock portfolios as the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped to a five-year low
on July 24.
More than six million surfers, or nearly eight percent of the active Internet population, visited a financial news site this past week, jumping 22% from the week prior. Business Week
drew 253,000 Web surfers, surging 68% in traffic while Forbes jumped 45%, attracting 269,000 visitors. Traffic to Bloomberg.com grew 32% to 231,000 Web surfers while Smartmoney surged 30% to 332,000.
MSN Money, meanwhile, jumped 26% in traffic to nearly 2.3 million visitors.
Traffic to online stock trading sites also surged, growing 6% week-over-week to 2.1 million Web surfers. Traffic to TD
Waterhouse jumped 28% to 215,000 visitors. Charles Schwab and Merrill Lynch each grew 15% in traffic, drawing 411,000 and 196,000 Web surfers, respectively. Ameritrade, Datek and E Trade each posted a
12% audience gain, as Ameritrade captured 284,000 visitors while E Trade and Datek drew 390,000 and 185,000 Web surfers, respectively.
Elsewhere on the web, traffic to the U.S. Department of
Treasury site soared 66% as 305,000 surfers logged on to the site to calculate the values of their savings bonds. Surfers also flocked to Bankrate.com to obtain information about mortgage rates, which
fell to a 35-year record low. Traffic to Bankrate.com skyrocketed 150% to 653,000 visitors.
The official site of the Social Security Administration also grew 54% to 249,000 unique visitors at home
for the week ending July 28, with 18% of the audience visiting the page for the Social Security Card application. Not surprisingly, adults age 35 to 64 comprised of 68% of the site's traffic.