News release: “Commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) reported net income of $1.7 billion in the third quarter of 2008, a decline of $27.0 billion (94 percent) from the $28.7 billion that the industry earned in the third quarter of 2007. With the exception of the fourth quarter of last year, the latest earnings were the lowest for the industry since the fourth quarter of 1990…In releasing the latest results, the FDIC cited higher provisions for loan losses as the primary reason for the drop in industry profits. In addition to the increased provision expenses, the industry reported $7.6 billion in losses on sales of securities and other assets in the third quarter, compared to $77 million in gains a year earlier. Noninterest income was $905 million (1.5 percent) lower than a year earlier, reflecting reduced securitization income at a few large institutions. Expenses for goodwill impairment and other charges to intangible assets were significantly higher than a year earlier. While large losses at a few institutions were chiefly responsible for the size of the earnings decline, more than half of all insured institutions (58.4 percent) reported lower net income in the third quarter, and almost one out of four (24.1 percent) reported a net loss.”