HSBC recorded pre-tax profits of $5.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022, up from $2.5 billion in the previous year.

The international bank said that the figures were driven by strong reported revenue growth and lower operating expenses.

However, across the year, profit before tax declined by $1.4 billion to $17.5 billion, in part driven by the bank’s planned sale of retail banking operations in France of $2.4 billion. The bank also has plans to sell its Canadian business.

Steve Clayton, head of equity funds at Hargreaves Lansdown said that while the financial results were strong compared to market expectations, the market was “hoping for a little more good news” as shares were down one per cent following their publication.

Clayton warned that the strong results depend on the bank maintaining robust cost controls, including the closure of more than 100 bank branched in the UK this year.

Over the 12-month period, credit losses and other impairment charges hit $3.6 billion, including allowances to address increased economic uncertainty, inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain disruption, alongside ongoing developments in mainland China‘s commercial real estate sector.

The bank’s group chairman Mark E Tucker said that while Asia and the Middle East have proven resilient and enjoyed a strong 2022, in Europe – including the UK – countries are facing challenges from higher energy prices, inflation, higher interest rates, in part driven by the Russia-Ukraine war.

“Overall, I am optimistic about the global economy in the second half of 2023, but there is still a high level of uncertainty due to the Russia Ukraine war and recessionary fears may yet dominate much of the year ahead,” he said.

The figures come days after NatWest announced that pre-tax profits increased by over a third to £5.1 billion last year. Profits at the bank were up by £1.3 billion compared to 2021 and the highest they’ve been since before the 2008 global financial crash.

Noel Quinn, group chief executive at HSBC said that 2022 was "another good year for HSBC.

"We completed the first phase of our transformation and our international connectivity is now underpinned by good, broad-based profit generation around the world," added the chief exec.

He continued: "We are on track to deliver higher returns in 2023 and have built a platform for further value creation. With the delivery of higher returns, we will have increased distribution capacity, and we will also consider a special dividend once the sale of HSBC Canada is completed.”

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