Concerns about debt levels at Bank of America have overshadowed its better than expected profits for the first three months of 2009.
The US's largest bank set aside $13.4bn (£9.2bn) to cover credit losses, from the fourth quarter's $8.5bn.
Its shares sank 24% and the news dragged other banking stocks lower.
This was despite net income soaring to $4.2bn in the first three months of 2009 from $1.2bn a year earlier, beating analysts expectations.
Its results were inflated by its purchases of Merrill Lynch, which added $3.7bn in net income, and Countrywide, which boosted its mortgage arm. Analysts said investors were looking beyond the bank's profit to the continuing concerns about the impact of the financial crisis on the banking system.
This sentiment pulled the Dow Jones index lower, with a knock-on effect on European markets.
No comments:
Post a Comment