JPMorgan profit rises as expenses fall

[NEW YORK] JPMorgan Chase & Co, the biggest US bank by assets, reported a 5.2 per cent increase in quarterly profit as expenses declined.

Net income rose to US$6.29 billion from US$5.98 billion a year earlier. On a per share basis, the bank earned US$1.54 compared with US$1.46 in the year-earlier period.

Analysts on average had expected earnings of US$1.44 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. It was not immediately clear if the reported results were comparable.

Revenue from fixed-income trading fell 21 per cent to US$2.93 billion. Adjusted for the sale of a physical commodities businesses last year, it would have fallen 10 per cent.

JPMorgan is the first of the US banks with large capital markets and investment banking operations to report second-quarter results.

Overall, the banks are expected to show flat to lower revenue from fixed-income trading from a year earlier, which was a relatively strong period.

REUTERS