People walk by a Citibank branch in Buenos Aires, Argentina, February 19, 2016. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc C.N CEO Mike Corbat on Wednesday indicated that the company's second-quarter net income will be roughly 25 percent lower than the same period a year earlier.

Corbat, speaking at an investor conference in New York, said he expects second-quarter net income to be roughly flat with the first quarter of this year. In the first quarter, the company reported $3.5 billion of profits, about 25 percent less than the $4.65 billion it reported on an adjusted basis in the second quarter of 2015.

Citigroup is to post second-quarter results on July 15.

Citigroup has been grappling with a long-term decline in capital markets revenue and higher costs to comply with regulation. The company has been spending to reduce staff and office space, while also beefing up its credit card business.

Corbat was questioned repeatedly at the conference about the company’s push to promote its “Double Cash” credit card that pays users 2 percent of what they spend, and about its aggressive bidding to take the Costco store co-branded card business from American Express.

He said the card investments will pay off because the card business is expected to provide a return on assets of about 2.25 to 2.35 percent over the economic cycle, or twice the target for the entire company.