- 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
Bank shares sink as contagion fears return
Bank shares tumbled on Friday, jolting stock markets as fears about the health of the financial sector resurfaced, with Deutsche Bank now in the eye of the storm.
Markets had rallied earlier this week after financial authorities took steps aimed at preventing contagion from the collapse of US regional lenders earlier this month.
But sentiment has soured following decisions by central banks in the United States, Britain and Switzerland to hike interest rates despite concerns about the impact of the monetary tightening on banks.
Fears of contagion led to the takeover of embattled Swiss bank Credit Suisse by domestic rival UBS on Sunday.
The focus has now turned to another major European lender, Deutsche Bank, whose shares nosedived by as much as 14 percent on Friday as the cost of insuring against the bank defaulting on its debt spiked. It closed 8.5 percent lower.
The German lender returned to financial health last year following a major restructuring after years of problems.
European officials lined up to reassure the markets.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said after an EU summit that "there is no reason to be concerned" about Deutsche Bank as the lender is "very profitable".
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde told EU leaders that the single currency area's banking sector is "resilient because it has strong capital and liquidity positions", according to an EU official.
But City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta told AFP that the selloff in bank shares has highlighted "just how fragile sentiment is towards the sector".
"As central banks continued hiking rates this week the outlook is looking increasingly shaky," she told AFP, adding that "Deutsche Bank has come under the spotlight as a possible target for contagion risk."
European stock markets finished another turbulent week sharply lower, with London down 1.3 percent while Frankfurt and Paris both shed around 1.7 percent.
Wall Street's three main indices opened lower but the Dow and S&P 500 steadied around lunch time.
Shares in US financial giant JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup were down around two percent while Bank of America fell 0.5 percent.
In Paris, Societe Generale sank more than six percent and BNP Paribas dropped more than five percent.
UK bank Standard Chartered also tanked by more than six percent in London while Barclays was down around four percent.
- Oil prices slide -
Concerns that the turmoil could trigger a recession sent oil prices sliding more than two percent.
Share prices in energy majors including BP, Shell and TotalEnergies also tanked.
Global markets were slammed earlier this month by the collapse of three regional US lenders, notably Silicon Valley Bank, which had lost $1.8 billion in the sale of a bond portfolio whose value dropped due to the higher interest rates.
US authorities moved to protect bank deposits but Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen revived concerns on Wednesday when she said authorities were not looking at a blanket increase in deposit insurance for banks.
Yellen was chairing a meeting of financial regulators on Friday.
"Contagion fears are not yet going away," said 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 hopeful, however, that central banks could be nearing the end of their interest rate-hiking cycle.
The turmoil has forced the Fed and others to change their monetary policy game plan to avoid further problems in the finance industry.
On Wednesday, the Fed indicated it could pause soon after announcing a quarter-point rate hike -- half what was expected before the latest upheaval.
- Key figures around 1645 GMT -
New York - Dow: FLAT at 32,118.86 points
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 1.3 percent at 7,405.45 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 1.7 percent at 14,957.23 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 1.7 percent at 7,015.10 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 1.8 percent at 4,130.62 (close)
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)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0756 from $1.0840 on Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2219 from $1.2286
Euro/pound: DOWN at 88.02 pence from 88.20 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 130.75 yen from 130.86 yen
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 1.5 percent at $74.40 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.3 percent at $69.04 per barrel
burs-lth/gw
Y.Ibrahim--CPN