Japan Banks See Earnings Decline: Japan’s major...

Japan Banks See Earnings Decline: Japan’s major commercial banks, many ranked among the world’s largest, face a gloomy outlook, judging by the latest earnings results. All but one of the 12 major retail banks and three credit banks posted profit declines of 10% or more in the six months ended Sept. 30. Mitsubishi Bank reported the biggest drop, with earnings plummeting 34% from a year ago to $271.9 million (53.08 billion yen). Bankers attributed much of the drop to higher interest rates, which have jacked up borrowing costs and squeezed profit margins.