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Goldman profits plummet
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December 14, 1998: 6:34 p.m. ET
Investment bank's 4Q earnings fall 81%, reflecting global market turmoil
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Investment bank Goldman Sachs Group L.P. reported an 81 percent decline in fourth quarter profits Monday, reflecting turmoil in global financial markets.
For the quarter ending Nov. 27, Goldman posted pre-tax earnings of $107 million on $915 million in revenue, well off its year-ago profit of $567 million on $1.59 billion in revenue.
Goldman's expenses fell to $808 million from last year's $1.02 billion figure.
"Our fourth quarter results reflect the extraordinarily difficult business environment in which Goldman Sachs operated this Fall," said John Thain, Goldman chief financial officer.
"Along with most other participants in the financial-services sector, certain key businesses were negatively impacted by the turmoil in the global financial markets, including, in particular, our credit and relative trading activities."
Despite the earnings falloff, Thain called Goldman's outlook "excellent."
For the 1998 fiscal year, Goldman reported earnings of $2.29 billion, down 24 percent from the $3.01 billion it earned in fiscal 1997.
Goldman also posted 1998 revenues of $8.52 billion, up 14 percent from 1997's $7.447 billion. Expenses climbed to $5.6 billion from $4.43 billion in 1997.
In September, Goldman's 190 partners suddenly scrapped the company's plan to go public, citing global market volatility and a recent decline in banking stocks. 
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Goldman Sachs
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