Profits at Europe’s biggest bank, HSBC, doubled in the first six months of the year as it released $700 million it had set aside to cover bad loans at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. On the back of the better-than-expected performance the bank resumed dividend payments with an interim payout of seven cents a share. The Bank of England scrapped curbs on payouts last month. SponsoredHSBC posted pretax profits of $10.8 billion, up from $4.32 billion over the same period last year, beating analysts forecasts for $9.45 billion of profits. US engineer Parker-Hannifin Corporation has tabled a £6.3 billion bid for Meggitt,

Source: The Times August 02, 2021 07:52 UTC