Word: bankses
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Many had expected the earnings at financial firms to drop in the fourth quarter of 2009. A number of the biggest firms at the end of last year rushed to repay the tens of billions of dollars they had received under the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program. Analysts said...
But even excluding the payments the banks made to the government, the fourth quarter was still a doozy. Sales at Citigroup, for instance, fell in three of its biggest units - investment banking, consumer banking and transaction processing - compared with the prior quarter. So while Citi's government-assistance repayment accounts...
Worse, some analysts say that even the banks' recently deflated earnings are likely stronger than they would have been without government help. Banks have been reporting that consumer credit is improving, with fewer individuals falling behind on their mortgage or credit-card bills. But programs like the government's Home...
"Forbearance and modification programs are helping for now," says analyst Paul Miller, who follows the banks at FBR Capital Markets. "We still have a lot of people who owe more than their house is worth. It's not sure how that will play out."
So at what point in the campaign was this? It was probably about, I'd say, a week, a week and a half after the [Dec. 8] primary. They were popping up all over the place because there was a point when we actually ran out of signs. We ran...