Good morning. Citi delivered a strong second quarter as C-suite leaders and consumers continue to adapt to persistent economic and tariff uncertainty.
During a media call on Tuesday morning ahead of Citi’s earnings call, CFO Mark Mason shared insights on the company’s performance—net income for the second quarter was $4 billion, up 25% year over year—and client outlook.
“Generally speaking, CEOs learn how to navigate the uncertainty and the volatility in markets,” Mason said. Even with some executives taking a cautious, wait-and-see approach to the economy, he expects business activity to continue picking up. He added that sentiment has improved, and the recession risk has declined significantly since the start of the second quarter.
Mason also noted that consumer financial health is “holding up nicely despite some of the uncertainty that’s still out there in the market.” While he described today’s consumers as more discerning, he observed that affluent customers are continuing to spend. Citi’s branded card spending volumes increased about 4% year over year, though travel-related spending has softened slightly.
Mason acknowledged that new tariffs on imported goods—due to take effect Aug. 1 across several countries—could still influence inflation and lead to unintended economic consequences. Tariffs are taxes on imports, and their most direct typical effect is to drive up costs for producers and prices for consumers.
“How that might show up in inflation and what some of the other unintended consequences might be is still unknown,” he said. Citi continues monitoring developments regarding tariffs, inflation, and labor market trends.
