DHAKA:  Profit at Europe's largest bank, HSBC, was up 10% in the first half of this year compared with a year ago on strong earnings in Hong Kong.

Pre-tax profit was $13.6bn (£8.7bn) in the first six months, compared with $12.3bn a year ago - higher than forecasts, which were for $12.5bn.

The lender also announced the sale of its Brazil unit to banking giant Banco Bradesco for $5.2bn.

The move comes as it tries to reduce costs with plans to cut 50,000 jobs, BBC reported.
"The environment for banking remains challenging," said Douglas Flint, the group's chairman. He mentioned that economic conditions are uncertain in many parts of the world, and "regulatory workloads have never been higher".

HSBC said it continues to cooperate in continuing investigations "regarding whether certain HSBC companies and employees acted appropriately in relation to certain customers who had US tax reporting obligations".

In February, claims surfaced that HSBC helped wealthy clients across the world evade hundreds of millions of pounds worth of tax.

The bank set aside $1.14bn (£.73bn) for settlements in connection with legal matters.
Its revenues rose by 4% to $30.8bn in the same period, with its Asian operations helping to drive earnings.

BDST: 1427 HRS, AUG 3, 2015
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