Goldman profits halved

PROFITS at Goldman Sachs have almost halved after the deal-making boom seen during the pandemic drew to a close.

The Wall Street bank’s second quarter earnings slid 47pc from the same time last year to £2.4bn – though this was still higher than analyst estimates of £2.2bn.

The stronger- than- expected results pushed Goldman’s shares up by nearly 3pc yesterday, coming after JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley both disappointed shareholders last week.

Chief executive David Solomon said: ‘We delivered solid results in the second quarter as clients turned to us for our expertise and execution in these challenging markets.’ The lender was weighed down by its investment banking revenues, which were 41pc lower on the same time in 2021 as fewer corporates tried to raise cash from shareholders. Its backlog of deals also shrank compared to the first quarter, suggesting that potential mergers and stock-market floats are being called off rather than pushed forward.

But revenues in its global markets division were 32pc higher year-on-year, as customers took advantage of volatility. Revenues in its consumer and wealth management unit, which includes online bank Marcus and the Apple credit card, climbed 25pc.