Citigroup on the road to recovery

Citigroup, long seen as the weakest of the major US banks, seems to be recovering now. But in a statement yesterday, chief executive Vikram Pandit cautioned that its road to recovery could remain rocky.

"Realistically, we do not expect our performance to follow an invariable trend-line upward," he said, but added that the bank's long-term prospects were "bright".

Chief financial officer John Gerspach said a key variable for the bank's future profitability is the performance of corporate and investment banking, which can fluctuate over time.

Values in the bank's Citi Holdings unit, which houses businesses and assets that the bank is looking to shed, are also an important factor, he added.

In March, Pandit said the bank was on track to return to sustained profitability and that losses from its bad assets should be manageable if the economy does not tank.