Profitability amongst financial services firms fell at a record pace in the three months to early June, while business volumes declined at the fastest rate in 17 years, according to the latest Financial Services Survey from the CBI and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
The survey, conducted between May 21 and June 4, also revealed that the impact of the credit crunch has intensified, with credit remaining expensive and in short supply and the gap between lending and borrowing rates widening more than at any time in the survey's history. Moreover, there appears to be no prospect of a swift resolution to the problems, with 91pc of financial services firms believing it will take longer than six months for conditions to return to normal. More than half (55pc) suffered a downturn in business volumes in the quarter, with just a fifth (20pc) reporting an ...
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