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Bloomberg
Credit Agricole SA’s trading revenue plunged in the fourth quarter, extending a tough quarter for French investment banking after volatile markets at the end of the year kept clients on the sidelines.
Capital-markets and investment-banking revenue declined 29 percent in the last three months of 2018, led by fixed income.
However, the lender’s earnings are less dependent on investment banking than rivals BNP Paribas SA and Societe Generale SA, which last week cut their targets after trading results disappointed investors.
“The second part of the year was more difficult, but this doesn’t mean that there’s any need to close or abandon any activities†in trading, Chief Financial Officer Jerome Grivet told journalists. “If we can, we should be even stricter on costs to shield ourselves from times of lower revenues.â€
Credit Agricole achieved 2019 targets for profit, revenue, capital and dividends one year ahead of schedule.
Analysts and investors are likely to focus now on revenue expectations for the French retail unit, as well as the outlook for insurance, asset management and the investment bank. Chief Executive Officer Philippe Brassac said the bank is well equipped to handle rising market uncertainty and there was “no surprise†in managing its trading books.
The bank said will present a new multi-year business plan on June 6.