Wall Street Banks Signal Cooler Q3 Trading Growth After Strong First Half

Major Wall Street banks are tempering expectations for Q3 trading revenue after a blockbuster first half.
JPMorgan expects markets revenue to rise in the mid-to-high teens, Citi sees mid-single-digit growth, while Bank of America expects roughly flat performance. Despite the slowdown, earnings for the five largest banks are still expected to grow about 20% from a year earlier.
The bigger divergence is inside trading desks. Jefferies reported record equities revenue, up 29%, while fixed-income revenue fell 26%. Bank earnings begin October 12, putting the gap between equity and fixed-income trading in focus.