HONG KONG: HSBC posted Wednesday tumbling second-quarter net profit on volatile markets and China’s slowdown, warning it faced “a period of heightened uncertainty” after Britain voted to leave the European Union.

Earnings after tax sank 40 per cent to $2.61 billion (2.3bn euros) in the three months to June from a year earlier, the firm said in a results statement, but assured it had weathered the Brexit storm “securely” after the nation’s shock vote to exit the EU in the June 23 referendum.

Pre-tax profit dived 45pc at $3.61bn over the same period, missing forecasts of $3.9bn according to Bloom­berg News.

Published in Dawn, August 4th, 2016