Some biz media ignored Citigroup’s weak December

TheStreet.com media critic Marek Fuchs takes the business press to task for ignoring Citigroup’s weak December when it reported its quarterly results earlier this week.

Fuchs writes, “Too often, the business media focuses on the bare essentials: earnings versus expectations. And, sure, all the business media told you that Citigroup disappointed. In fact, they had a car accident of a quarter. But within quarters, there are often trends that point forward. Like late strength. Or, as in this case, a ‘very, very weak’ last month. Gathering worry about Europe’s financial implosion means the trend is hardly Citigroup’s friend.

“And that’s as important to mention as what they did compared to expectations or last year. Moreover, Citigroup put it right out there for the media.

“But did the media pick up on it? Not Motley Fool, which made a big deal of the comparative strength of full-year performance, but didn’t make mention of the great fade. Reuters mentioned that Citigroup was ‘battered in the latter-part of last year,’ but that was too general. Does that mean November or December? Citigroup’s CFO was clear: December, the last month of the year, was ‘very, very weak.’

“The New York Times was clear and ran the CFO’s quote, which just might define Citigroup’s coming days.”

Read more here.