HSBC's profits leap over £12bn thanks to Asian market

HSBC has published a pre-tax profit of £12.3bn for 2017.

The company has stated its focus was on Asia, which is driving growth. The results represent a 141 per cent jump on the group’s profits from 2016 alone.

HSBC is known for being hugely popular on the UK’s high-streets, but where the company makes a lot of its profit is outside of the country. Asia accounts for the majority of its international turnover.

HSBC’s chairman, Mark Tucker, said: “A large increase in reported profit before tax reflected both a healthy business and the non-recurrence of significant items from 2016.”

While it was an evident improvement on 2016’s results, the profit is still lower than the $18.9bn (around £13.5bn) reported in 2015.

The bank has been focusing on a drive to streamline its business and reduce its cost, which has been headed by chief executive Stuart Gulliver who, tomorrow (February 21), will hand over his role to John Flint after seven years at the helm.

Mr Flint, HSBC’s former head of retail banking and wealth management, has said he is aiming to speed up the pace of change at the firm.

HSBC said its pivot to Asia in the past few years has been paying off, with wealth management, commercial and retail banking becoming key drivers of growth.

Across 2017, the bank said its pre-tax profits from Asia rose by 89.3 per cent from a year earlier to $15.3bn (around £10.9bn) - the bulk of its global profits for the year.