It’s been a sour housing market of late with rising mortgage defaults and consumer debt. And big banks have been feeling the hurt too. Birmingham’s Regions Financial reported second quarter profits are down by more than 50% and cut their dividends by an even higher percentage. Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia had losses approaching $9 billion and is cutting more than 6,300 jobs nationwide, including some jobs in Alabama. Former Wachovia CEO Ken Thompson was also a casualty in that company’s financial woes. WBHM’s Steve Chiotakis spoke with John Kottmeyer, an economics professor at Samford University’s Brock School of Business about the sour news and what to expect in the future.
