Morgan income halved

Choppy bond and equity markets hit the blue-chip US investment bank JP Morgan in the fourth quarter of 1994. It recorded net income halved from $392m to $193m.

Citicorp also suffered a $1bn fall in trading revenues over the year but its greater exposure to lending and other non-trading areas enabled it to nearly double net income to $1bn in the last quarter compared with the same three months in 1993.

JP Morgan said trading revenue declined 75 per cent to $153m in the fourth quarter from $606m a year earlier, with lower revenue from equities and commodities trading, and losses in debt instrument activity.

Full-year 1994 trading revenue declined 51 per cent to $1.019bn from $2.059bn in 1993, which JP Morgan said was mostly because of lower revenue from debt instrument trading.

Douglas Warner, chairman, said: "The depth and diversity of our business helped Morgan weather a difficult year in world markets well. We begin 1995 with a clear focus on providing superior service to clients with complex financial needs."