As in the US, non-US bank stocks continue on a downward trend this year due to the financial problems that began in the US subprime mortgage market and spread globally to engulf many major financial institutions in most countries. The median year-to-date stock price decline for non-US bank in the Zacks universe is 2.4%, compared to a loss of 3.5% for the S&P 500. This includes median price declines for non-US banks in the Zacks universe of 6.1% in Europe, 3.9% in Asia, and 0.4% in Latin America.
In response to the global financial crisis, governments have taken dramatic action to forestall the possibility of global meltdown.
