HSBC profits more than double after reversing credit losses

The London and Hong Kong-based bank is planning to cut staff by about 35,000 to drive down costs.

HSBC Holdings Plc earnings more than doubled in the first quarter as credit losses were reversed and the lender returned to profit in Europe and the U.S. Adjusted pretax profit rose to $6.4 billion in the three months through March, beating a consensus estimate of $4.3 billion, the London-based lender said on Tuesday. “Global Banking and Markets had a good quarter, and we saw solid business growth in strategic areas, including Asia wealth and trade finance, and mortgages in Hong Kong and the U.K.,” Chief Executive Officer Noel Quinn said in a statement.