- Stocks fell as worries flared about the banking system amid the SVB collapse and the painful effects of high interest rates
- Struggles come amid what Bank of America strategists called ‘the crashy vibes of March’
- Analysts have said ‘cracks are appearing’ and the situation at SVB, which was shut down by regulators, was a ‘warning for the Fed’
Stocks tumbled at the end of the week as worries flared about the banking system amid the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank – the biggest banking crisis since the global financial crisis.
The Dow dropped for a fourth consecutive day, closing down 345 points. The S&P 500 lost 1.45% and the Nasdaq shed 1.76%.
Earlier on Friday, analysts at the Bank of America have warned the ‘crashy vibes of March’, driven by high inflation, were set to worsen as markets suffered on Friday.
The unrest in the markets came as Silicon Valley Bank was dramatically seized by financial regulators after a run on deposits tipped the bank into collapse, in the largest US bank failure since the Great Recession in 2008.
California state regulators shuttered the bank on Friday, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) immediately took control of its $209 billion in assets and $175.4 billion in deposits.