HSBC Reports 48% Fall in 1Q Pre-Tax Profit 

By Gina Lee

Investing.com – HSBC (HK:) reported a 48% slump in its year-to-year pre-tax profit during the first quarter of 2020 on Tuesday.

The bank also reported a 5% drop in its revenue to $13.686 billion. 

The London-headquartered bank was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic as the virus hit Asia, which contributes the bulk of the bank’s earnings, first.

HSBC warned investors in February that its revenue could be decreased by the virus in February with the virus at its peak in Asia. In late March, alongside Standard Chartered (LON:), the bank said that it would not pay dividends for 2020 following a request from the British regulator. But it was forced to slash pay for some of its top management days later due to the backlash from investors.

HSBC’s Hong Kong stock was up 1.77% to HK$ 40.20 ($5.19) by 12:27 AM ET (5:27 AM GMT) as investors digested the news.