Growing revenues from capital markets and advisory work at BNP Paribas failed to offset declining corporate banking revenues during a lacklustre second quarter through June in which pre-tax profits in CIB plummeted 39% from a year earlier.

Revenues from corporate and investment banking of €2.1 billion fell just 2.4% from the second quarter of last year, but pre-tax profits were down almost 39% over the same period to €497 million. The bank said in a statement announcing its quarterly results today that profits last year had benefited from gains made on asset disposals.