European Banking Stocks Drop as SVB Fallout Continues

By Adria Calatayud

European banking stocks fell again Wednesday as investors continued to digest the implications for the sector from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank ahead of the European Central Bank's meeting on Thursday.

At 1035 GMT, shares in Credit Suisse Group AG fell 21% to 1.77 Swiss francs ($1.94), having earlier fallen to a new intraday record low of CHF1.73, after its largest shareholder, Saudi National Bank, ruled out providing more liquidity, according to Bloomberg.

Shares in BNP Paribas SA and Societe Generale SA were briefly halted after dropping more than 8%. UBS Group AG, Deutsche Bank AG, Banco Santander SA, Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, and Barclays PLC all traded down 5% or more.

Analysts at Citigroup said in a research note the recent rally in European equities set the stage for profit taking and that European banks remained vulnerable to more weakness in the near term.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Banks index fell 5.8%, taking its decline over the last week to nearly 14%. Since the beginning of the year through Tuesday's close, the Stoxx Europe 600 Banks index gained 10%.

Write to Adria Calatayud at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 15, 2023 06:55 ET (10:55 GMT)

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