Tricky final quarter triggers HSBC sell-off

Shares in FTSE 100 financial giant HSBC (LON:HSBA) dropped by 4.19% to 635.90p (as of 12:20 GMT) as it missed profit forecasts during the final quarter of the year ended 31st December. The company said that there were rising risks in a number of its key markets for the year ahead, which have made the outlook for 2019 less predictable.

Reported revenues for 2018 were 5% above those for 2017, while reported pre-tax profits for the year ended 31st December climbed by 16% to $19.9 billion.

Chief executive John Flint commented: “These are good results that demonstrate progress against the plan that I outlined in June 2018. Profits and revenue were both up despite a challenging fourth quarter, and our return on tangible equity is significantly higher than in 2017. This is an encouraging first step towards meeting our return on tangible equity target of more than 11% by 2020“.