HSBC's 1H profit more than doubles as economies rebound

HSBC said it had given the brighter outlook globally as economies recover better than expected from the pandemic.

HONG KONG/LONDON: HSBC Holdings on Monday reported forecast-beating first-half pretax profit that more than doubled from a weak performance last year when it made huge provisions for pandemic-related bad loans.

Encouraged by an economic rebound in Hong Kong and Britain, its two biggest markets, HSBC reinstated dividend payments and released $700 million that had been set aside to cover potential bad loans. That compares with $6.9 billion in loan-loss provisions made in the same period a year ago.