Tucker sees first rate cut in June

Staff reporter and agencies

HSBC (0005) chairman Mark Tucker expects the US Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates in June, with a cumulative decrease of 150 basis points at the end of 2023.

Speaking at a three-day inaugural HSBC Global Investment Summit in Hong Kong which kicked off yesterday, Tucker said the economic outlook in the mainland, the United States and India still remains strong and manufacturing sees signs of improvement.

Tucker expects China to achieve its goal of around 5 percent economic growth.

But he warned that various headwinds may continue to affect the economy like the ongoing Ukraine war and Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in addition to global supply chain challenges caused by the Red Sea crisis and the impact of elections in many regions this year.

Meanwhile, chief executive Noel Quinn said he's pushing to improve HSBC's wealth management capabilities in China and India to be on par with its key Hong Kong market.

"We have a really strong wealth management business in Hong Kong," he said in a Bloomberg TV interview. "I want an equally strong wealth management capability in mainland China, Singapore, for Asean, and in India."

Along with other global banks, HSBC is building out its wealth-management operations to help offset more volatile earnings derived from dealmaking and trading. HSBC returned to India last year while also expanding its presence in other parts of Asia as well as the Middle East.