Goldman Sachs Q3 Equity Trading Revenue Jumps 72% to $6.44B as JPMorgan Bond Desk Slips

Goldman Sachs third-quarter equity trading revenue surged 72% year over year to $6.44B, nearly double the $3.47B generated by its fixed-income desk, which dipped 1%. The division housing both desks grew 32% overall to $13.46B. JPMorgan Chase's bond trading desk missed analyst estimates by more than $500M, with fixed-income revenue falling 4% to $5.4B for its first decline in over two years. JPMorgan's equities desk rose 49% to $5.0B, though its overall revenue and net income missed expectations. Bloomberg Intelligence senior US banks analyst Herman Chan attributed the fixed-income slowdown to expectations of prolonged high interest rates keeping clients on the sidelines in September, even as the 10-year Treasury yield hovered near 5.2% on Tuesday. Higher rates continued to benefit lending margins, lifting JPMorgan's net interest income 12.8% to $27.04B, while Wells Fargo set aside $1.03B for loan losses, up from $681M a year earlier. New York Fed President John Williams said Tuesday that one more rate hike in 2026 looks appropriate with none expected in 2027, while Chan projects seasonal declines in fourth-quarter trading revenue as equity desks remain reliant on the AI trade following Tuesday's chip stock selloff. "Goldman was the gold standard for the third quarter." — Herman Chan, Senior US Banks Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.