Q: How do you characterize the economy right now?
A: The economy is getting stronger every day, and I would say it’s rather broad-based, and hopefully this will continue. That’s true globally. It’s good for America when the rest of the world grows, because you can sell more to the rest of the world. Large corporations are in very good shape, have plenty of capital and are starting to expand. But we also see the same thing from middle market-sized companies and small businesses. Our small-business lending is up 37% this year. Other banks are also seeing more loan demand in middle markets and small business.
Q: What about foreclosures in the pipeline? How do you see that playing out, and why hasn’t the housing market participated in this recovery?
A: The mortgage pain is just a terrible story. Too many mortgages were badly done. I’m not talking about us. But foreclosures haven’t quite peaked yet. We’re probably halfway or two-thirds through the problem….