The Strategist

HSBC pretax profit jumps 28% in Q3



10/29/2018 - 13:52



HSBC shares jumped during trading in Hong Kong, after the bank reported that its pre-tax profit in the third quarter rose by 28% compared to the same period last year and amounted to $ 5.922 billion.



Håkan Dahlström via flickr
Håkan Dahlström via flickr
Profit exceeded the average forecast of analysts, which amounted to $ 5.6 billion. The growth of the indicator in percentage terms was maximum for four quarters, Reuters writes.

HSBC revenue in July-September increased by 6.32% in annual terms to $ 13.798 billion

Operating expenses fell to $ 7.966 billion in the third quarter from $ 8.546 billion in the same period last year. Investors are closely watching the bank, after an increase in expenses in the first quarter resulted in lower profits.

Adjusted pre-tax profit increased by 16% in annual terms to $ 6,193 billion

"These are encouraging results that demonstrate the potential revenue of HSBC," said HSBC CEO John Flint.

HSBC shares in Hong Kong jumped 5.6% after posting quarterly results.

In June, Flint outlined a three-year plan to invest $ 15-17 billion in technology and operations in China.

HSBC is also employing more people to drive growth in some of its divisions, including investment banking and the private banking sector. In these areas, the bank lagged behind its American and some of its European competitors.

As of the end of September, the number of full-time bank employees increased by 5.044 thousand from December to 233.731 thousand.

HSBC pre-tax profit from operations in Asia in July-September increased by 10.7% to $ 4.5 billion, making up 75% of the group's total pre-tax profit. In June, Flint reiterated development in Asia as one of the bank’s strategic goals.

Flint also said that the bank’s appetite for doing business in other regions, including Saudi Arabia, remains unchanged, despite recent unrest over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Bloomberg writes.

source: bloomberg.com