Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Ask Michael Burke -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (49443)	3/2/1999 10:34:00 AM
From: yard_man	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 132070

They would never do that would they? <VBG> biz.yahoo.com U.S. thrift industry earns record $7.6 bln in 1998 WASHINGTON, March 2 (Reuters) - A healthy economy and booming housing sales boosted U.S. thrift industry earnings to a record $7.6 billion last year, beating the previous record of $6.4 billion in 1997, the Office of Thrift Supervision said on Tuesday. Fourth quarter earnings, however, declined to $1.4 billion from the third quarter's record $2.2 billion and the 1997 fourth quarter's $1.7 billion, due to one-time restructuring charges related to industry mergers and acquisitions. OTS director Ellen Seidman said the thrift industry continued to be financially strong, but the agency's examiners were concerned by three areas: thrifts are getting into higher-risk lending without adequately managing risks; there has been some lowering of lending standards; and more construction lending is being done on a speculative basis. ''We are pleased with what we are seeing but, as always, when the economy is doing well, that is the time for regulators to ensure people are not taking excessive risks that will bite them if the economy begins to turn (downward),'' Seidman said. Despite some early signs that thrifts are beginning to overreach for high yields, the thrift industry's asset quality continued to improve. Troubled assets fell to 0.77 percent of total assets in the fourth quarter, down from 0.99 percent in the year-earlier quarter and the lowest level since the measure was first used in 1990.