Bank CEOs expect Trump bump to business as profits surge
Business
Bank CEOs expect Trump bump to business as profits surge
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street CEOs voiced confidence on Wednesday that the incoming US administration would be business-friendly and good for banks as they reported a profits surge after dealmaking and trading picked up.
The market environment has already been favorable for banks, with buoyant equity markets and anticipation that President-elect Donald Trump will usher in a deregulatory and lower-tax agenda.
"There has been a meaningful shift in CEO confidence,
"Animal spirits are back," said Stephen Biggar, banking analyst at Argus Research, referring to the tendency for investors' emotions to drive stock prices. "There are good times to be over-exposed to capital markets revenues, and this is one of them."
Goldman Sachs recorded its biggest quarterly profit since the third quarter of 2021, at $4.11 billion, helped by deal fees, debt sales and trading. Its fourth-quarter global banking and markets revenues rose 33.4% year-over-year and the bank posted record net annual revenues in equities.
Cooler inflation in the U.K. gives sterling some stability.
The bank said in a statement its prospects for investment-banking fees were greater in December than they were in September, offering an optimistic outlook for the coming months.
JPMorgan Chase JPM.N posted a roughly 50% rise in net income as both investment-banking fees and trading revenues jumped in the last quarter, with CEO Jamie Dimon hopeful of more favorable conditions to come.
