Banking Angst Continues to Unnerve Global Markets.

Anxiety about the state of the financial system persists as the end of the first quarter comes into view, with market jitters about recent bank failures, pervasive depositor uncertainty, and how regulators respond. The first early March business surveys from Europe showed little sign of disturbance yet, and the brisk start to the year for major economies was also underlined by punchy British retail numbers. U.S. regional bank stocks lurched lower again on Thursday, with the KBW Regional Bank index sliding 3% as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen tried to reassure that public deposits were safe, promising firepower to battle any crisis. European bank stocks fell 3% early on Friday, with Deutsche Bank shares down for a third day - losing 5% amid rising market costs for insuring against the risk of default.