Figures released by Standard &Poor (S&P) show that the 500 biggest publicly traded companies in the world, showed overall operating earnings down by 29% for the year in the second quarter of 2008.
Earnings for the quarter were $116.2 billion (£63.3 billion), compared to $194.3 billion in the second quarter of 2007.
This is the fourth quarter in a row that has shown negative earnings growth for the S&P 500, but it is the financial companies, who were the best performers in 2007, now finding themselves in the worst possible financial situation. In contrast Energy companies keep the figures looking almost respectable, accounting for 25.1% of the S&P 500 operating earnings.
The credit crunch has certainly hit hardest in the financial sector and excluding them from the 500, figures would show a growth of 3.2% on the year.
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