Morgan Stanley profits fall 42%

Bank's chief executive blames volatility in global markets for disappointing third-quarter results as trading revenue plummets

Morgan Stanley's profits have slumped for the second consecutive quarter as uncertainty about the timing of a US interest rate rise and concerns about China's cooling economy drive investors from bond, currency and commodity markets.

The last of the big US banks to release third-quarter results, it said earnings applicable to common shareholders had fallen 42.4% to $939m (606m), or 48 cents a share, from $1.63bn, or 83 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts had been expecting 62 cents a share.