HSBC delivers mixed result

HSBC has sought to place the best possible face on its first half results, pointing to a 96 per cent increase in its year-on-year profit to US$100 million at the same time as acknowledging a 29 per cent decline in profit attributable to shareholders of its parent company.

The bank reported that personal financial services profit before tax was down 21 per cent to US$100 million.

Commenting on the result, HSBC Australian chief executive Stuart Davis said the company had started the year in a net deposit situation as a result of its disposal of its broker mortgage and margin lending portfolios in 2006 and that it had responded early to market circumstances by reviewing its loan portfolio when credit markets first turned.

He said that during the first half of 2008, HSBC in Australia had grown customer loans and advances and customer deposits to US$12,664 million and US$13,846 million respectively year on year. Deposits had grown by 34 per cent over the same period last year, while loans had grown by 29 per cent.

“As the uncertainty in global markets continues, HSBC Australia is well-positioned to withstand market conditions because our strategy is based on the fundamental global advantages of being part of the HSBC Group — using common products, common systems and a common brand,” Davis said.