Is making U.S. banks foresee trouble more trouble

By Dena Aubin NEW YORK (Reuters) - Forcing banks to anticipate trouble in their loan portfolios by reserving more money on their balance sheets for potential loan losses seems like a no-brainer, especially after the 2007-2008 credit crisis that shook world economies. So why is the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) meeting criticism over a proposal to do just that? One reason is a fear that banks could abuse a new standard, proposed in December by FASB, by using increased loan loss reserves to smooth out the profits they report to Wall Street. ...