03:57 PM EDT, 10/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes fell ahead of the close on Thursday as a sharp drop in government bond yields and a surge in gold futures to new all-time highs undermined investor confidence.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% to 22,563.1, with the S&P 500 down 0.6% to 6,629.9 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.6% lower at 45,968.5. Financials and energy led the decliners intraday. Technology was the sole gainer.

Shares of Zions Bancorporation (ZION) slumped past 14% after the lender disclosed a $50 million charge-off to be reflected in Q3 earnings. The charge stems from an internal review of two borrowers and their obligators, which uncovered "apparent misrepresentations and contractual defaults," along with other irregularities involving the loan and its collateral, Zions said Thursday in a regulatory filing.

Meanwhile, Western Alliance Bancorp's ( WAL ) shares dropped past 11% after the company initiated a lawsuit against Cantor Group V in August for alleged fraud related to a note finance revolving credit facility.

The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF ( KRE ) slumped 6.5% intraday.

The CBOE Volatility Index, also known as the fear gauge, soared nearly 23% to 25.36.

Separately, President Donald Trump said "great progress" was made during a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Thursday, with the pair agreeing to face-to-face talks in Hungary, BBC reported.

BBC also reported Thursday that India's foreign ministry has said it is "not aware" of a phone call in which Trump claimed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop purchasing Russian oil.

Gold futures were up 2.6% to $4,311.50 after touching yet another all-time high of $4,311.80, and silver futures traded 2.9% higher at $52.87 after hitting a new peak of $53.615 earlier in the session.

US Treasury yields fell, with the two-year yield down 8.4 basis points to 3.42% and the 10-year rate 7 basis points lower at 3.98%.