(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-04-18 19:36

NEW YORK - Citigroup Inc, the largest US bank, on Friday posted its second straight quarterly loss, hurt by more than $15 billion in write-downs and increased reserves for credit losses.

The Citigroup Center is photographed in this Jan. 15, 2008 file photo in New York. [Agencies]

The loss totaled $5.11 billion, or $1.02 per share, and compared with a year-earlier profit of $5.01 billion, or $1.01 per share. Revenue fell 48 percent to $13.22 billion.

Analysts on average expected a loss of 96 cents per share on revenue of $14.35 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

Despite the loss, Citigroup shares rose $1.43, or 6 percent, to $25.46 in premarket trading.

Chief Executive Vikram Pandit is trying to focus on stronger businesses after years of underinvestment and questionable risk management left Citigroup bearing the full brunt of the credit market crisis. The bank has slashed its dividend and raised more than $30 billion in capital.

Results included $6 billion in write-downs and credit costs tied to subprime mortgages, $3.1 billion in write-downs for loans to fund corporate buyouts, and a $3.1 billion increase in credit costs related to consumer lending.

The company also wrote down $1.5 billion of its exposure to bond insurers and $1.5 billion for auction-rate securities.

"Results reflect the continuation of the unprecedented market and credit environment and its impact on our historical risk positions," Pandit said in a statement.

Through Thursday, the company's shares had fallen 18 percent this year, compared with a 9 percent drop in the Philadelphia KBW Bank Index .BKX. The stock's 52-week high is $55.53, set last May 23.