Edwin J. Gray was upbeat about the S&L; industry.

Gray, chairman of the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corp., disputed the perception that the thrift industry was “weak and getting weaker.” Although about a fifth of the nation’s thrift institutions will lose money this year, the industry overall is in good shape, he said at the concluding session of the American Bankers Assn. annual convention in San Francisco. The industry overall is expected to post record earnings again, he said.