Mary Moore is preparing a report on the commercial banking industry. As she gleaned information from the competitors annual reports she encountered the following statements in the CEO’s letters to their shareholders and the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section:
William Spencer, CEO of Western Banks, stated in the MD&A: “Consolidation within the industry will continue at its current pace, or perhaps accelerate, as banking concerns seek to increase their presence and market share.”
Margaret Acosta, CEO of Southwest Banking, stated in her letter to the shareholders: “Competition is becoming increasingly diverse as banks continue to increase in size and offer products ranging from insurance and mutual funds to high tech interaction with customers.”
Maria Bellini, CEO of Atlantic Mercantile Banks, noted in the MD&A that: “Cost advantages in most traditional banking activities seem to be mostly gone now, which will impact the industry future profitability.”
Moore is most likely to report that the commercial banking industry has high rivalry among competitors based on:
A) |
Margaret and Maria's statements only. | |
B) |
William and Maria's statements only. | |
C) |
William and Margaret's statements only. | |
William and Maria's statements support arguments for rivalry among commercial banks in that they indicate that banks must increase market share through mergers and acquisitions and that traditional banking activities are now commodities. Margaret's statement suggests that banks are offering increasingly diverse products in an attempt to differentiate – the opposite of a commodity-type business. |