HSBC To Increase China Hiring In 2017 For Further Expansion

According to Bloomberg, HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) plc (NYSE:HSBC) , as part of its continued efforts to expand globally, is planning to accelerate hiring in China in 2017 for its Retail Banking and Wealth Management segment.

The London-based bank is targeting China’s wealthy individuals and is attempting to capture their businesses, despite being aware that China’s economic growth has slowed and authorities are taking steps to curb the outflow of yuan from the country.

Notably, per Kevin Martin, HSBC’s head of retail banking and wealth management in the Asia-Pacific region, as of Sep 2016, the bank increased its retail-bank employees by 57% in the Pearl River Delta of China.

According to him, as the bank expands its operations from mortgages to credit cards, personal lending and wealth services, the speed of hiring is likely to increase in 2017.

Further, HSBC is also expanding its China reach with the start of its credit cards business there. Earlier the bank used to issue credit cards in partnership with Bank of Communications Co. However, after receiving regulatory approval, it can now issue cards by itself in China. Martin said that the bank is planning to issue more than 3 million cards in the near term in the country.

Notably, CEO Stuart Gulliver said that because of the economic slowdown, instead of a three-year period, HSBC is now expected to hire 4,000 employees over five years in China’s Pearl River Delta.

HSBC shares have gained 22.1% in the past six months, significantly outperforming the 7.1% gain of the Zacks categorized Foreign Banks industry over the same time period. This is perhaps due to the company’s strong capital position and a solid balance sheet.

Currently, HSBC carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the finance space include Carolina Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:CARO) , Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) and Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) .

Carolina Financial has witnessed an upward earnings estimate revision of 12.9% for the current year in the past 60 days. Also, its share price is up 49.4% year to date. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Itaú Unibanco currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and witnessed an upward earnings estimate revision of 3.0% for the current year, over the past 60 days. Moreover, its share price is up 65.1% year to date.

Comerica also carries a Zacks Rank #2. It has witnessed an upward earnings estimate revision of 8.8% for the current year in the past 60 days and its share price has surged 56.3% year to date.

The Best Place to Start Your Stock Search

Today, you are invited to download the full list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buy" stocks – absolutely free of charge. Since 1988, Zacks Rank #1 stocks have nearly tripled the market, with average gains of +26% per year. Plus, you can access the list of portfolio-killing Zacks Rank #5 "Strong Sells" and other private research. See these stocks free >>.