Loan loss provisions surged and were about a third higher than net interest income earned  2  See for instance F. Mishkin, “Not all bubbles present a risk to the recovery”, Financial Times, 9 November 2009. 4  BIS Review 148/2009  by euro area large and complex banking groups in the second quarter of 2009.
This was the highest level seen in the past five years. The increase in revenues from the core banking business and the considerable cost-cutting have nevertheless boosted profitability this year. Income from trading has recovered strongly in this period, also improving banks’ performance.