What's going on?

HSBC � the biggest bank in Europe � announced impressive quarterly results on Monday.

What does this mean?

After a bumpy few months, things are finally getting back on track for HSBC: the bank made more from loans last quarter on the back of rising interest rates, while market volatility helped its trading division bring in 27% more than the same time last year. So even though it had to put aside $400 million in case recession-afflicted customers can�t pay off their loans, it still earned $5 billion in pre-tax profit last quarter � over $1 billion more than analysts were expecting. And with rates only set to climb, things are looking good going forward: HSBC said that every 1% rise in rates will add $4.7 billion to its net interest income. That sounded great to investors, who sent its shares up 7%.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Ping An is very persuasive.
HSBC has been under pressure from China�s Ping An Insurance Group � which owns nearly 10% of its shares � to separate its Asian business from its Western operations, giving investors a more �pure-play� investment in the region�s growth. Still, one of the main reasons for Ping An�s beef was HSBC�s decision to stop regular dividend payments during the pandemic. But now that things seem to be on the up, HSBC has pledged to restore quarterly dividends by next year � something it’s hoping will keep Ping An at bay.

Zooming out: HSBC�s all in on the East.
To be fair to Ping An, HSBC�s Asian business is a compelling investment, with the bank making over two-thirds of its profit from the region last quarter. Then again, HSBC has been quite deliberate about shifting its focus from elsewhere in the world: it�s sold off units in France, Greece, and the US, and warned on Monday that it could be cutting even more jobs soon to keep costs down.