HSBC has warned of incurring losses of up to $ 13 billion this year due to its bad debt costs.

According to Reuters, the bank said that profits fell by more than half, as the pandemic of the Corona virus hit corporate and retail clients around the world.

The bank said that its capital reserves may deteriorate, while its revenues may be subject to pressure and that it faces intense geopolitical risks, in a darker future outlook expected for the second half of the year. Europe's largest bank.

HSBC has increased its estimate of bad debt costs that it may incur this year to between $ 8 billion and $ 13 billion, from a range of $ 7 billion to $ 11 billion, given losses. Actual worse than expected in the second quarter of the year and expectations of a more severe economic decline.

The bank announced pre-tax profit of $ 4.32 billion for the first six months of this year, while analysts expected an average of $ 5.67 billion.

Provisions for credit losses jumped to $ 6.9 billion in the first half, compared to a billion dollars in the same period a year ago.

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