
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, June 20, 1994                    TAG: 9406200200 
SECTION: BUSINESS WEEKLY                     PAGE: 14    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: Short 
DATELINE: 940620                                 LENGTH:

FINANCE: ANOTHER PROFITABLE YEAR

{LEAD} Aided by low interest rates and fewer troubled loans, most banks and thrifts in Hampton Roads reported another year of robust earnings in 1993.

Improved profits enabled many of the region's financial institutions to strengthen their capital. Some institutions shared their higher earnings by increasing their dividends to shareholders.

{REST} Still, the threats to bank profitability have not disappeared. Loan demand in Hampton Roads, especially from business borrowers, has been lackluster, and rising interest rates are already sapping some demand for credit.

In the face of mounting pressure on their income from lending and investing in government securities, banks and thrifts have sought other ways to build profits. Some expect to generate additional fee income by selling mutual funds and other investment products.

Banks and thrifts also are trying to protect their profits by holding down their costs.

{KEYWORDS} ALMANAC

by CNB