Forecast: EU bank profits likely to crash

LONDON: Top European Union (EU) banks estimate profits next year would drop to a sixth of 2010’s level under a two-year recession, according to expectations they were forced to reveal as part of an industry health check. The biggest 13 EU banks expect an operating profit of almost €83 billion ($117 billion) next year under their baseline estimates, up from €72 billion in 2010. But estimated profits would crash to €12 billion under the recession scenario. Profits at HSBC and BNP Paribas would be among the hardest hit by the recession.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 17^th, 2011.