Investment Banking

European banks hope 2019 will not be another year to forget

The European Central Bank’s tentative exit from easy money hasn’t provided much relief for lenders

Deutsche Bank's headquarters in Frankfurt
Deutsche Bank's headquarters in Frankfurt Photo: Getty Images

If it is bad being a bank in the stock market right now, being a European bank is even worse.

The Euro STOXX banks index is down 34% this year, compared with a 23% fall for US banks in the KBW banks index. The sector is trading more than 40% below book value and the cost of insuring European bank debt against default has doubled from a year ago.

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