- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Stock markets diverge before China weekend briefing
- EU questions shopping app Temu over illegal products risk
- Han Kang's books sell out in South Korea after Nobel win
- Shanghai markets sink ahead of briefing on mixed day for Asia
- Investors, analysts eye bigger China stimulus at Saturday briefing
- Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
- At least 11 dead in Florida but Hurricane Milton not as bad as feared
- Asian markets mixed after Wall St drop, Shanghai dips before briefing
- Automaker Stellantis says CEO will retire in 2026
- Musk's promised robotaxi unveil delayed
- On US coast, wind power foes embrace 'Save the Whales' argument
- At least 10 dead in Florida after Hurricane Milton spawns tornadoes
- Internet Archive reels from 'catastrophic' cyberattack, data breach
- Wall Street stocks retreat from records on US inflation data
- Israel strikes central Beirut, killing 22
- Solar storm could impact US hurricane recovery efforts: agency
- Delta eyes Election Day travel pullback as profits climb
- Florida battered by hurricane, floods but spared 'worst-case scenario'
- UK's William and Kate in first joint public engagement since cancer treatment
- Over 200 women in legal talks with Harrods over Fayed abuse claims
- A very stiff breeze: BBC says sorry for 20,000 kph wind forecast
- Musk finally unveiling his long-promised robotaxi
- London's Frieze art fair goes potty for ceramics
- US, Europe stocks fall on US inflation data
- US consumer inflation eases to 2.4% in September
- Hurricane Milton tornadoes kill four in Florida amid rescue efforts
- South Korea's Han Kang wins literature Nobel
- Ikea posts fall in annual sales after lowering prices
- Stock markets diverge, oil gains after China rebounds
- World can't 'waste time' trading climate change blame: COP29 hosts
- South Korean same-sex couples make push for marriage equality
- Mumbai declares day of mourning for Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- 7-Eleven owner restructures to fight takeover
- Sri Lanka recovering faster than expected: World Bank
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as most markets track Wall St record
- Uniqlo owner reports record annual earnings
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as markets track Wall St record
- Indonesia biomass drive threatens key forests: report
- Mumbai mourns Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
European bank shares slump as contagion fears reignite
European bank shares slumped Friday, sending stock markets tanking as contagion fears erupted once more after a raft of global interest rate hikes.
Frankfurt's Deutsche Bank shares nosedived more than 13 percent on the lender's spiking cost of default cover, or credit default swaps, while peer Commerzbank tumbled by 10 percent.
In Paris, Societe Generale shed nearly eight percent and BNP Paribas lost around seven percent in value.
And in London, Barclays, NatWest and Standard Chartered tumbled about six percent.
Investor panic also sent oil prices sliding about three percent on weaker demand fears owing to a possible recession.
Share prices in energy majors including BP, Shell and TotalEnergies also tanked.
The haven dollar surged against the euro and pound.
- 'Contagion risk' -
"The selloff in banks has resumed, highlighting just how fragile sentiment is towards the sector," City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta told AFP.
"As central banks continued hiking rates this week the outlook is looking increasingly shaky.
"Deutsche Bank has come under the spotlight as a possible target for contagion risk," she added.
Indices in the key European capitals plummeted by more than two percent, after earlier losses across Asia.
Central banks pressed on this week with monetary tightening to bring down high inflation -- even though the troubles in the banking sector have been linked to their interest rate hikes.
The region's indices had wobbled Thursday as investors weighed rate hikes in Britain, Norway and Switzerland.
That came one day after the US Federal Reserve ramped up borrowing costs, and one week after a hefty increase from the European Central Bank.
Friday's fresh market woes overshadowed news of an upbeat survey showing eurozone economic growth hit a 10-month high in March.
- Shockwaves -
Global markets were slammed earlier this month by the collapse of three regional US lenders, notably Silicon Valley Bank.
Switzerland's enforced UBS buyout of embattled Credit Suisse last weekend sent further shockwaves across trading floors.
"Contagion fears are not yet going away," warned Finalto analyst Neil Wilson.
"It only stops once people stop asking who's next. And it does not seem like we are at that stage yet."
Some investors are however hopeful that central banks could be nearing the end of their interest rate-hiking cycle.
Pledges by global authorities to provide support to troubled lenders and depositors provided some stability.
The turmoil has also forced the Fed and others to change their monetary policy game plan to avoid further problems in the finance industry.
On Wednesday, the Fed announced a quarter-point rate hike -- half what was expected before the latest upheaval -- and indicated it could pause soon, while there is growing talk it could even begin cutting by year's end.
Observers said an expected tightening of credit in the finance sector -- caused by wary banks lending less -- would allow the Fed to step back.
But data indicating the US jobs market remained tight highlighted the need for the Fed to stick to its policy of battling prices.
There was a spot of bright news, with inflation slowing in Japan.
Japanese consumer prices rose 3.1 percent in February to slow from recent four-decade peaks, official data showed.
The Bank of Japan sees inflation as the result of temporary factors, including the Ukraine war, and sees no reason to raise interest rates.
- Key figures around 1040 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 1.9 percent at 7,360.62 points
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 2.0 percent at 14,903.57
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 2.0 percent at 6,996.08
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 2.0 percent at 4,121.32
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 27,385.25 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.7 percent at 19,915.68 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,265.65 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 32,105.25 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0734 from $1.0840 on Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2213 from $1.2286
Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.89 pence from 88.20 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 129.86 yen from 130.86 yen
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 3.2 percent at $73.46 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 3.6 percent at $67.47 per barrel
burs-rfj/bcp/imm
D.Philippon--CPN