HSBC first quarter profit falls a smaller than expected 14%

The revenues fell 4% year-on-year to $13.9 billion

HSBC posted a 14 per cent drop in its first-quarter profit, as the lender's investment banking unit saw trading income tumble in the grim global market environment early in the year, but the profit fall was smaller than expected.

HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, reported on Tuesday a pretax profit of $6.1 billion for the first three months of this year, down from $7.1 billion a year ago, but above the average forecast of $4.3 billion from analysts polled by the company.

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Underlying revenues fell 4 per cent year on year to $13.9 billion.