U.S. commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) reported aggregate net income of $34.5 billion in the second quarter of 2012, a $5.9 billion (21 percent) improvement in profits from the second quarter of 2011. By comparison, net income at Iowa banks reached $210 million, a 37 percent improvement from the previous year. It was the 12th consecutive quarter that earnings at U.S. banks have increased on a year-over-year basis. Lower provisions for loan losses and higher gains on sales of loans and other assets accounted for most of the year-over-year improvement in earnings, the FDIC said. “The banking industry continued to make gradual but steady progress toward recovery in the second quarter,” FDIC acting Chairman Martin J. Gruenberg said.