VERY PROFITABLE: January through March was the most profitable first quarter for U.S. banks in nearly five years, and the number of troubled banks fell for the fourth straight quarter.
LINGERING CAUTION: The mostly positive earnings illustrate how far the industry has come since 2008, but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. noted Thursday that many banks remain cautious about lending.
THE NUMBERS: Banks earned $35.3 billion in the first quarter, up from $28.7 billion a year earlier, while the number of banks on the FDIC's confidential "problem" list fell to 772 from 813 in the fourth quarter of 2011.
