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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Profit falls at Bank of America | Profit falls at Bank of America |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The US's largest retail bank, Bank of America, has reported its fourth quarterly profit decline in a row. | The US's largest retail bank, Bank of America, has reported its fourth quarterly profit decline in a row. |
| The firm was hit by an increase in bad debts associated with the slump in the housing market and economic slowdown. | The firm was hit by an increase in bad debts associated with the slump in the housing market and economic slowdown. |
| Second quarter net income at the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank, fell to $3.41bn (£1.7bn) from $5.76bn a year earlier. | Second quarter net income at the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank, fell to $3.41bn (£1.7bn) from $5.76bn a year earlier. |
| Results included $212m of merger costs, but not the cost of merging with Countrywide Financial, bought in July. | Results included $212m of merger costs, but not the cost of merging with Countrywide Financial, bought in July. |
| Chief executive Kenneth Lewis said the bank had produced "solid results in a difficult financial environment," with good results in nearly all its sectors not associated with property. | |
| Shares in the firm rose $2.75, or 10%, to $30.24 in morning trading as the loss was not as bad as had been expected. | |
| Signs of hope? | |
| Bank of America acquired Countrywide Financial, the US's biggest mortgage lender, in a deal worth $2.5bn. | Bank of America acquired Countrywide Financial, the US's biggest mortgage lender, in a deal worth $2.5bn. |
| The bank said its purchase of Countrywide, once the nation's largest mortgage lender, would add to profit faster and result in deeper cost cuts than first thought. | |
| "It suggests the credit crisis isn't as bad as people thought" for lenders, said Steve Roukis, managing director at Matrix Asset Advisors . | |
| "A week ago there was tremendous fear about systematic risk to the system. There's definitely a floor here." |