Barclays is wise, given the vascillating that has embarrassed its rivals, to refuse to rule out some kind of capital raising. The bank this morning admitted that its core equity Tier 1 capital ratio, which was already below the bank's 5.25 per cent target at December, would fall even further, possibly to as low as 4.9 per cent according to analysts, by the half-year. Finance director Chris Lucas says that Barclays is "prepared to run ahead of targets or below, depending on circumstances". But with financial regulators pushing banks to beef up their capital buffer, and Barclays' competitors' aiming for targets of 6 per cent at the very least, the bank is going to look increasingly out of step. Questions about its balance sheet are likely to to continue to drag the stock. A further downturn in the financial markets could worsen the problem. It was tricky to tell how parts of the bank are faring. Barclays Capital has been profitable in the year to date despite the turmoil. But, although it wrote back up £500 million worth of its own debt, Barclays did not mention similar improvements in its credit investments. It has also been sparing in writing down its leveraged finance exposure. There is much that could still turn sour for banks this year. No wonder Barclays wants to leave all its options open.

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