Barclays reports profits fall

Barclays today reported a 9% drop in quarterly profits after it saw a sharp fall in income from its investment banking arm.

Pre-tax profits fell to £1.66bn (€1.86bn) in the first quarter of 2011 after revenues at Barclays Capital dropped 15% to £3.3bn (€3.7bn) as the group dealt with “a challenging external environment”.