by Stephen Grocer at the Wall Street Journal
David Stockman’s Contra Corner
The volatility that hit markets in the first part of the year has weighed heavily on investment banks, whose fees were down 36% in the first quarter from the same period a year earlier, WSJ’s MoneyBeat reports.
- $12.8 billionInvestment-banking revenueSo far this year, the lowest quarterly total since the height of the financial crisis
- $2.3 billionFees from equity offeringsA drop of 55% from the same period last year
Markets tumbled to start the year as investors fled risky assets, such as equity and high-yield bonds. The value of equity and high-yield bonds coming to market globally this quarter is down 46% and 68%, respectively. IPO volumes tumbled 74% world-wide, according to Dealogic.