FRANKFURT (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 10, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that Commerzbank AG's (A-/Negative/A-2) decision to downsize its oversized and unprofitable investment banking unit could help to stabilize its performance and reduce market risk. Losses in investment banking and restructuring charges caused a pretax loss of €121 million in the third quarter of 2004, underscoring Standard&Poor's concerns about the unit's dependence on market developments. However, the bank's total earnings in the first nine months improved significantly, as retail banking, asset management, and corporate banking posted better year-on-year results due to cost control and lower provisioning needs. The lack of critical mass and integration into the bank's corporate business as well as competitive pressure has contributed
