Jefferies Group's fiscal second-quarter earnings rose 55% as the firm reported strong results in its investment-banking and equities-trading units, outweighing a drop in fixed income trading revenue.

The investment bank's results, often seen as a barometer for results to follow from larger rivals, come after JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup in recent weeks warned that second-quarter trading revenue would be down sharply on continued weakness in fixed income, currencies and commodities trading.