REUTERS - Like Morgan Stanley... only bigger.

Goldman Sachs' quarterly profit nearly quadrupled to just over US$2 billion (S$2.85 billion). Driving that profit higher was the same factor as at the other banks: a surge in trading revenue following the election victory of Donald Trump.

Goldman gets more of its income from trading than its competitors, and that unit delivered. Fixed income unit revenue nearly doubled.

That helped push overall revenue up more than 12 per cent. All of its businesses grew except investment banking, which suffered from drops in financial advisory and equity underwriting revenues.

UBS senior analyst Brennan Hawken said: "Relative to peers that have already reported, results at Goldman Sachs seem solid aside from the miss in equities, which was likely attributable to softer hedge fund activity levels."

Fixed income trading also helped lift Citigroup's quarterly profit 7 per cent. Its shares, which have gained 17 per cent since the election, were slightly lower at the start of trading.

Goldman shares, which have risen about 30 per cent since the polls, inched lower.