Figure 1. Bank profitability, 1985-2008.
Data are plotted as curves. The return on equity begins in 1985 at about 11 percent, dropping to nearly 1 percent by the middle of 1987, then rebounding to about 11.6 percent by 1988, and then dropping by about one-half in 1989 and remaining at that level for about a year. The return on equity then rises from about 7.3 percent in 1990 to about 15.3 percent in 1993, varies between about 13.5 and 15.5 percent through 2003, falls to about 13 percent in 2005, and then rises to nearly 14 percent in 2006. It then falls to about 9.4 percent in 2007, and to less than 1 percent at the end of 2008. The return on assets begins in 1985 at about 0.7 percent, dropping to less than 0.1 percent by the middle of 1987, then rebounding to about 0.7 percent by 1988. It then drops by about one-half in 1989 and remains at that level for about a year. The return on assets rises from about 0.5 percent in 1990 to about 1.2 percent in 1993, varies between 1.2 and 1.4 percent through 2005, rises slightly to 1.4 percent in 2006, drops to about 0.97 percent by 2007, and falls to less than 0.1 percent in 2008.
NOTE: The data are annual.
SOURCE: Here and in subsequent figures and tables except as noted, Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (Call Report).
