HONG KONG: Global banking giant HSBC saw quarterly profit surge on the back of lower fines, beating expectations, but turnover slid amid Asian markets volatility, it said yesterday.
Pre-tax profit jumped 32 percent to US$6.1 billion in the third quarter from US$4.6 billion in the same period of last year, HSBC said in a results statement.
Net profit after taxation rebounded 52 percent to US$5.2 billion.
“Our third-quarter performance was resilient against a tough market backdrop,” said Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver, who unveiled a radical restructuring earlier this year to boost profitability and move on from recent scandals.
Revenues were adversely affected by fierce stock market sell-offs in Asia, and fell 4 percent to US$15.1 billion.
Gulliver noted that “the stock market correction in Asia” had weighed on HSBC’s Principal Retail Banking & Wealth Management division, and on its Global Banking & Markets unit.
HSBC had said in June that it would cut its global workforce by up to 50,000 and sell off its businesses in Brazil and Turkey to cut costs.
“Our cost-reduction measures are beginning to have an impact on our cost base,” Gulliver said, but added there was more to achieve.
The bank is also considering moving its headquarters from Britain but said there was a “considerable amount of work still to do” before a decision is made.
“Whilst the target for completion of the review was initially set as by the end of 2015, this is a self-imposed deadline that can be moved should the Board require further work to be performed,” the report said.
Chairman Douglas Flint, speaking to reporters in a conference call, added that the bank would try to make a decision by the end of the year.
“We take it very seriously and give it the appropriate amount of work,” Flint added.
The third-quarter results meanwhile beat analysts’ expectations, with some saying cost cuts are now reaping rewards.
“This time the earnings were pretty impressive,” said Jackson Wong, associate director for Simsen Financial Group.
“Their cost control had (previously) not really lived up to the target, but now it looks like they are finally in control.”
