New York Stock Exchange member firms lost more than US$14.5 billion in the first quarter, the exchange reported.

The NYSE said that firms that conduct business with the public (the category generally also includes firms that trade primarily for their own account, but excludes specialists) reported a first quarter 2008 after-tax loss of US$14.50 billion, compared with US$3.03 billion in after-tax profits in the same quarter last year.

“The aggregate loss for the quarter results in large part from the turbulence in the credit markets and is reflected in sizeable write downs of proprietary holdings of mortgage related and auction rate securities positions at a limited number of member firms,” it explained.

In the quarter, the NYSE said that firms has revenues of US$49.4 billion, down from US$89.8 billion in the first quarter of 2007. Revenues are predominantly derived from investment banking, trading, commissions, and interest.

The exchange indicated that 118 firms were profitable in the quarter, although their collective pre-tax earnings were down to US$2.0 billion from US$5.2 billion last year. Meanwhile, the unprofitable firms lost a combined US$24.4 billion pre-tax.

Since the NYSE member firm community is composed of corporations and partnerships, after-tax earnings are presented on a pro-forma basis that assumes a corporate tax rate of 35%.