Fannie Mae back in profit
Fannie Mae, the largest backer of loans in the US housing market, yesterday posted a profit and said it would not need more taxpayer aid for the first time since the height of the financial crisis in late 2008, when it was rescued by the government. In a new sign that the US housing market is on the mend, the mortgage giant posted a first-quarter profit of $2.7bn (£1.67bn) – its best performance since being pushed to the verge of collapse by the US housing crash and the surge in bad debts on its books. Fannie Mae’s recent profit compared with a net loss of $6.5bn in the first quarter of 2011. But finance director Susan McFarland said the firm is not yet out of the woods as the economy remains soft.