Wall Street Traders Supercharged by Tariffs That Stymied Deals

Wall Street banks were optimistic Donald Trump’s second term would unleash a dealmaking boom. Instead, it’s delivered a trading bonanza.

First-half trading revenue at the five biggest lenders jumped $10 billion from last year to a record level, with tariffs and tax policy driving a surge of activity across equity, currency and bond markets. Investment-banking revenue, meanwhile, nudged up less than $1 billion, and is still almost 40% below the 2021 peak as that same volatility weighed on merger and IPO volumes.