Emerging markets power HSBC's income
Bank chief points to a pick up in last months of 2012 and trade demand propelling Asia's large share of the global lender's loan growth
Emerging markets contributed 85 per cent of the income of global banking group HSBC, chief executive Stuart Gulliver said yesterday.
Gulliver said half of the group's loan growth came from Hong Kong, mainland China, and the rest of Asia, driven by trade demand. Hong Kong and Latin America had the best performances in retail banking and wealth management.
"The final months of the year saw an improvement in growth and sentiment, with Asian economies picking up, and worries over the euro zone moderating," Gulliver said. The picture for Asia in 2013 was brighter than last year, he added, with mainland China's gross domestic product expected to return to 8.6 per cent.
The lender's US$4.4 billion profit before tax for the fourth quarter was 25.7 per cent higher than the previous quarter.
Its underlying profit before tax rose 18 per cent to US$16.4 billion for the full year. Pre-tax profit was down 6 per cent to US$20.6 billion on a reported basis, mainly because of a US$5.2 billion fair-value loss on its debt.
The bank also paid a US$1.9 billion fine to United States regulatory authorities to settle a US investigation into money laundering, and made an additional provision of US$1.4 billion for British customer redresses last year.