Will large mortgage banks like BofA, WAMU, drop their wholesale mortgage products?

Bank of America has announced plans to phase out its wholesale operations early in 2008. I expect this to a manner of relatively short duration for BOA, since it's not about to eliminate a source of profit once conditions return to a more normal situation. Mortgage wholesaling is generally a profitable venture for the large banks, which have been badly burned of late by risky and inappropriate lending practices. BOA's venture with Countrywide may be a part of this decision, but I don't expect the situation to be a long term decision for any of the major banking institutions.