Bank of America's balance sheet offers plenty of reasons to conclude that it will be able to weather the current storms.

Bank of America has built a reserve of $18 billion to cover mortgage losses (this doesn't include litigation reserves), which might have to go higher to be sure. And it has built a cash position of roughly $140 billion, a huge amount. Fortress Balance Sheet indeed. And yet it needs to do more, as it enters a period of weak earnings growth and regulatory uncertainty. Job cuts were inevitable, and no one was surprised by its decision to cut 3,500 jobs.

This is merely the first of what will likely be several rounds of job cuts. The initial round, according to the New York Times, seems to focus on support positions across the bank. But subsequent rounds will likely affect other areas. More news is coming soon, and many expect the cuts to eventually hit 10,000. At some point, you would think traders and perhaps some investment bankers will be affected.

CEO Brian Moynihan has said he wants to cut costs by $1.5 billion a quarter in an effort to get the stock price moving north again. Recall the stock is down more than 50 percent from an intraday annual high, and has dipped into penny stock territory. So he is doing what he has to do. Other banks are also pondering similar moves. So from an industry point of view, this very much feels like a double dip. We can only hope this doesn't hold true for the broader economy.

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