JPMorgan sees profits fall after securities trading arm takes a hit

JPMorgan Chase & Co, the biggest US bank by assets, reported an 8 per cent decline in second-quarter profit as a pullback in trading of bonds and currencies by big institutions hit revenue in its securities trading business. Net income fell to $5.99bn (£3.49bn), or $1.46 per share, from $6.5bn, or $1.60 per share, in the same quarter of 2013.

Revenue fell 3 per cent to $24.45bn.

Analysts on average had expected earnings of $1.29 per share.

“Toward the end of the second quarter, we saw encouraging signs across our businesses including an uptick in wholesale utilisation, strengthening pipelines in our commercial and business banking segments, and some improvements in markets activity,” chief executive Jamie Dimon said.

Revenue from fixed-income and equity markets fell 15 per cent to $3.5bn compared with the year-earlier quarter.

Goldman Sachs Group, which also reported yesterday, said quarterly earnings rose 5 per cent, powered by its investment and lending business. Income from fixed income, currency and commodities fell 10 per cent.

JPMorgan executives have said institutional investors seem to be shying away from bonds because of a lack of strong opinions about future moves in interest rates.