Goldman good times keep on rolling

In their attempt to defuse the looming bonus row, bank executives are fond of saying that the vintage years in investment banking are over and that pay will fall as returns on capital decline. In the long run, this may be true. But the short-term outlook for investment bankers ain't so bad. Goldman Sachs has reported a 40% fall in third-quarter earnings but said it has set aside $370,000 (£236,000) per employee in "compensation". OK, that is less than the $527,000 seen at this stage a year ago. But it's an average. And it's for the first nine months of the year.