GOLDMAN SACHS: It has been a horrible start to 2016 for Wall Street

Wall Street banks have had a tough start to the year.

Goldman Sachs bank analyst Richard Ramsden said in a note Monday that the first quarter could be the weakest in recent history for capital markets revenues.

He projected capital markets revenues will be down 15% year-on-year for the first quarter.

"The combination of higher volatility, wider credit spreads, lower equity valuations, and uncertainty around the trajectory of economic growth across the globe has created a very tough environment for the capital markets business to start the year," the note reads.

Ramsden also attributed it to slowing issuance and a tough comparison period. Capital markets revenues in the first quarter of 2015 were up 6% from the previous year.

He predicted a 17% decline in investment banking division revenues, a 13% drop in equities revenues, and a 15% decline in fixed income, currencies, and commodities revenues.

Several banks have begun downsizing their fixed income divisions and laying people off. Morgan Stanley, which Ramsden expects to report at 21% decline in FICC, reduced its headcount by 25% in that division.