HSBC is offering free business information and tips to small and medium-sized enterprises worldwide in a bid to draw more loan applications ahead of an expected slowdown in commercial loan growth this year.
The bank's head of commercial banking, Albert Chan, said growth in commercial loans in Hong Kong this year was likely to be less than the 22 per cent rise seen last year. He blamed weakening demand from overseas.
'Raw material costs have fallen more than 10 per cent since late last year. Coupled with a drop in the number of invoices, demand for loans has weakened,' Chan said
But the bank expects global trade to revive by 2014 and then accelerate, fuelled by China and robust trading within the southern regions.
According to HSBC, global trade is expected to double in value in the next decade to US$33 trillion, while Hong Kong's trade is forecast to enjoy average growth of 4.47 per cent a year between now and 2018, outpacing global growth of 3.84 per cent.
'We hope that by helping SMEs to find business, they will choose us as their bank,' Chan said.