Stock prices fell on Friday as investors became concerned about the stability of the banking system.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 206 points or 0.6%, while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite were also down 0.6%.
The stock prices of major banks fell on Friday after Deutsche Bank’s credit default swaps rose to a four-year high. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) shares were down over 2% and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) fell 2.8%, while Deutsche Bank’s (NYSE:DB) shares were down 7.9%.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Congress on Thursday that officials were prepared to take more measures to ensure that bank deposits are safe. However, this has not alleviated fears about a potential lack of liquidity that could lead to reduced lending.
Many futures traders believe that the Federal Reserve will decide to pause interest rate hikes at its next meeting in May.
Although orders for durable goods fell last month, this was not as bad as expected. In addition, manufacturing and services PMIs came in better than anticipated.
Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) shares rose 5% after the UK competition regulator limited the scope of its antitrust investigation into the Microsoft-Activision deal.
Oil prices fell today, with WTI crude oil futures down 2.2% to $68.46 a barrel, and Brent oil futures down 2% to $74.33 a barrel. Gold futures were up 0.1% to $1999 an ounce.