Overall, banks continued to report strong earnings from their mortgage banking operations during the second quarter, but there were nearly as many institutions reporting declining profits or net losses as there were reporting gains. According to an analysis by Inside Mortgage Trends, an affiliated newsletter, a group of 21 top lenders posted a combined $8.2 billion in mortgage banking profits during the second quarter. That was down 6.8 percent from the $8.8 billion those same companies earning during the first three months of the year, but mortgage banking income was up dramatically from the first half of 2011. Major banks reported...