HSBC, fourth largest bank in the world in terms of assets, has announced that it is going to cut 1,100 jobs worldwide in its banking operation. With approximately half of the job losses to take place in HSBC headquarters and UK based international banking division and markets operation in Canary Wharf in the UK. Another 100 of the job are losses in Hong Kong, where the large Asian operations are based of this bank. Here the jobs would be cut in both front divisions and back office operations.

In a statement the company said that global pre-tax profits for the segment were 2.7 billion dollars in the early half of the year 2008, drop 35% over the early half of the year 2007 although it is 37% higher than in the next half of the year 2007. Moreover its half-year earnings drop almost 30 percent to £5.2 billion as the bank was forced to write-off $14 billion from bad debts and asset write-downs in the U.S.A.

On the other hand, an HSBC official said the firm had opted to cut its employees, “because of market conditions and the economic environment, and our cautious outlook for 2009.” He also added, “Markets continue to be challenging and difficult but our strategy leaves us well positioned for the next wave of global growth, when it comes.”

After the announcement to the news of job cuts among the 330,000 workforces worldwide, the market responded positively. Hong Kong-traded shares of HSBC increased 0.5 percent against a decreasing overall market.

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