Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., October 16, 2025.
Jeenah Moon | Reuters
U.S. stock futures fell on Friday as concerns surrounding regional banks’ loan practices pushed investors away from riskier assets and toward safe havens.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 360 points, or 0.8%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were down by 1.1% and 1.3%, respectively.
Zions Bancorp fell more than 1% along with Western Alliance. Banc of California shed 3.6%. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) shed 1.4%.
The stock market sold off on Thursday fueled by a significant decline in bank stocks late in the session. Zions and Western Alliance disclosed bad loans, which sparked worries about loose lending practices and fears that similar issues could arise. Uneasiness in the banking sector has grown after the recent bankruptcies of two auto industry-related companies.
Friday will offer another chance to gauge how regional banks are faring, with a slew of companies set to report their earnings, including Comerica and Fifth Third, among others.
Meanwhile, tensions about global trade and tariff policies, elevated market valuations amid the artificial intelligence boom and the effects of the ongoing U.S. government stoppage have also carried on unabated. The shutdown, which is in its third week, has resulted in an indefinite halt of crucial economic data releases from federal agencies.
Interactive Brokers Group fell more than 3% despite reporting strong quarterly results, and Oracle slipped 3.7% after the cloud computing giant gave analysts its long-term financial outlook. Drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk also moved notably lower after President Donald Trump during a briefing on fertility treatments suggested the administration was negotiating much lower prices for their blockbuster obesity drugs.
