HSBC to pay largest dividend in 4 years, lifted by bumper fourth-quarter profit that beat forecasts

Name: China housing: Can the world’s biggest housing market boom again?
Uploaded: 2023-02-21T04:42:14.000Z
Duration: 11 min 5 s
Description: China housing: Can the world’s biggest housing market boom again?

Net profit rose to US$4.62 billion last quarter, compared with US$1.79 billion in the same quarter in 2021; better than analysts’ expectations

HSBC to pay final dividend of 23 US cents a share for 2022

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An HSBC branch in Hong Kong. The bank’s shares declined 1.3 per cent in the city on Tuesday ahead of the announcement. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Chad Brayin London

Published: 12:42pm, 21 Feb 2023Updated: 4:43pm, 21 Feb 2023

HSBC said it would pay shareholders its biggest dividend in four years, after the fourth-quarter profit of Hong Kong’s largest bank more than doubled on higher interest rates and improved revenue in the markets and securities businesses.

The bank, one of Europe’s biggest by assets, said its net profit rose to US$4.62 billion in the three months ended December 31, from US$1.79 billion in the same quarter of 2021. On a pre-tax basis, HSBC reported a profit of US$5.21 billion, ahead of the US$4.97 billion expected by analysts, according to a consensus estimate compiled by the bank.

“We see a steady recovery this year for Hong Kong as international activity returns and travel with mainland China resumes,” Noel Quinn, HSBC’s CEO, said on a call with journalists. “We’ve seen some of that evidence towards the end of last year, but we’re also seeing that evidence in January, the first part of the year.”

“Wealth activity started to pick up. We expect economic activity to accelerate over the coming quarters,” he added. “We are supporting our clients and Hong Kong more broadly in capturing new opportunities.”

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China housing: Can the world’s biggest housing market boom again?

The bank is based in London, but generates much of its revenue in Asia. The fourth-quarter results included US$1.4 billion in reserves for potential soured loans to reflect continued pressure on mainland China’s commercial real estate sector and corporate exposures in the United Kingdom, as well as a US$59 million charge for a bank levy charged by the British government.