The tough week for banks continued Friday as Citigroup reported a year-over-year decline in net profits of 27 percent during the first quarter in the bank’s Q1 earnings statement released Friday, from 4 point 8 billion dollars down to 3 point 5 billion. The sharp decline in profits for Citigroup in Q1 echoed a theme that has been reverberating throughout the week for the nation’s larger banks. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and PNC Financial all reported net income declines in Q1.
According to banking industry analyst Ron Shevlin, Director of Research at Cornerstone Advisors, there are two main drivers of the declines in Q1 earnings for the banks: Low oil and gas prices that have hurt an industry with already high debt ratios and the decline of the stock market, global volatility, and the uncertainty of the direction of interest rates all combined to drive down banks’ profits in the first quarter.
The number of non-foreclosure solutions completed by mortgage servicers in February 2016 outpaced the total of foreclosure completions by a three to one ratio during the month, according to HOPE NOW. The industry completed approximately 97 thousand non-foreclosure solutions, including loan modifications, short sales, deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, and other workout plans, in February, compared to about 28 thousand foreclosure sales during the month.