US stocks muted amid regional banks credit jitters

U.S. stocks traded mixed as jitters around bad loans at regional banks persisted despite President Donald Trump’s latest comments on trade tensions between the United States and China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 50 points, but the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% despite upbeat sentiment helped by the latest comments on U.S.-China trade tensions that aided bulls. Wall Street’s reaction to growing concerns over bad loans at regional banks continued to see stocks waver, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite hovering at -0.4%.

Already, U.S.-China trade tensions and the ongoing government shutdown have catalyzed a slowdown for equities, with the flipside being a flight to safe-haven assets.

This outlook strengthened on Thursday as two U.S. regional lenders revealed exposure to loans linked to fraud. Shares of the two banks fell by double digits during the Thursday session following the news. Western Alliance Bancorp dropped 11% and Zions Bancorp slid 13%.

Overall jitters about US credit quality had initially triggered a cascade of sell-off deals across risk assets, with Bitcoin (BTC) dipping below $105,000. 

A slowdown in stocks sees gold soar

Stocks showed recovery as White House injected a slight flicker of positive sentiment with its plans to ease tariffs on autos. Trump’s comments on U.S.-China trade tensions added to this uplift. However, the prevailing feeling is one where investors are craving clarity. 

This means the lingering uncertainty that has recently curtailed stocks’ rally remains.

Amid this outlook, there’s been a notable flight to safety. 

Gold has led the risk-off trajectory with a surge that saw prices pierce the $4,300 an ounce mark. Bullion could see a more than 7% in weekly gains and has teased an uptick closer to what the precious metal managed in 2008 following the collapse of Lehman Brothers.