Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase kicked off banks earnings season with blowout results. Here's what it could mean for hiring across Wall Street.

Wall Street banks JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup notched up strong rises in profits at the end of last year, powered by a boom in trading and dealmaking. JPMorgan’s net earnings rose 50 per cent per cent to $14bn,

Asian shares are mixed after gains for oil and gas producers helped offset drops for Nvidia and other Big Tech companies on Wall Street.

Profits at some of the biggest U.S. lenders rose in the fourth quarter as dealmaking picked up and trading was boosted by strong equity markets, sparking a rally in banking stocks on Wednesday.

Citigroup reported earnings of $1.34 per share for the fourth quarter, surpassing Wall Street estimates of $1.22. A year ago, the bank posted a loss of $1.16 a share. Shares rose 3.6% in premarket trading.

U.S. stocks ripped higher after an encouraging update on U.S. inflation. The S&P 500 jumped 1.8% for its best day in two months Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.7%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 2.

Wall Street just brought the fireworks, and the markets are loving it. Major U.S. banks like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup delivered blockbuster earnings, blowing past expectations and sending their stock prices higher.

Wall Street pointed modestly higher early Tuesday ahead of new data on inflation and the kickoff to earnings season. Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each ticked up 0.3% before the bell.