Hong Kong/London: HSBC Holdings PLC beat forecasts with a 31% rise in quarterly profit, bolstered by a surge in income from its core Asian business and lower costs due to the absence of legal and regulatory expenses borne in the year-ago quarter. HSBC booked $897 million in legal and regulatory expenses in the first quarter of 2018 but did not have those and others such as currency translation costs in the current quarter. Profit before tax at Europe's biggest lender by assets rose to $6.21 billion in the March quarter from $4.76 billion in the same quarter last year. The profit was above the $5.58 billion average of analysts' estimates compiled by the bank. Hong Kong shares of HSBC rose more than 2% in afternoon trade after the results, reversing their losses earlier in the day.

Source: Mint May 03, 2019 05:48 UTC