Merrill Lynch & Co.’s 1988 profit climbed...

Merrill Lynch & Co.’s 1988 profit climbed 38% to $463.2 million. Revenue rose to a record $10.5 billion, up 7%. The New York brokerage holding company attributed the results to record earnings in its investment banking division and an after-tax gain of $254.7 million resulting from termination of its defined benefit pension plan that covered substantially all U.S. employees.