Citi: Consumer Credit Woes Moderating

Is the worst over for the consumer credit crisis? Citigroup (C) said on July 17 that it was seeing some moderation in consumer credit losses and that it could signal a plateau for distressed mortgages and credit cards.

In a conference call with analysts, bank officials said they foresee a moderation in growth of net credit losses for the second half of the year. Meanwhile, cost-cutting and asset sales are boosting profits. "We are encouraged," said new CFO John Gerspach.