HSBC 2009 Annual Report Download - page 23

21
Number of customer transactions (millions)
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
Branch/Call
Centre-Agent
Credit
card
Internet Self Serv ice
Terminal
Other
e-Channels
Others
(pay ment,
clearing, etc)
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Percentage of IT services meeting or exceeding
targets
HSBC’s IT function establishes with its end-users
service levels for systems performance, such as
systems running 99.9 per cent of the time or credit
card authorisations within two seconds, and monitors
the achievement of each of these commitments. The
following chart shows the percentage of IT services
meeting or exceeding the agreed service targets by
region. All regions continue to show sustained
improvement over the period.
Percentage of IT services meeting or exceeding
targets
90%
91%
92%
93%
94%
95%
96%
97%
98%
99%
100%
Asia-Pacific Europe Latin America North America IT Overall
2007 2008 2009
Reconciliation of reported and
underlying profit before tax
HSBC measures its performance internally on a
like-for-like basis by eliminating the effects of
foreign currency translation differences; acquisitions
and disposals of subsidiaries and businesses; fair
value movements on own debt attributable to credit
spread where the net result of such movements will
be zero upon maturity of the debt; and, in 2007, gains
from the dilution of the Group’s interests in associates,
all of which distort year-on-year comparisons. HSBC
refers to this as its underlying performance.
Reported results include the effects of the above
items. They are excluded when monitoring progress
against operating plans and past results because
management believes that the underlying basis
more accurately reflects operating performance.
Constant currency
Constant currency comparatives for 2008 and
2007 used in the 2009 and 2008 commentaries,
respectively, are computed by retranslating into
US dollars for non-US dollar branches, subsidiaries,
joint ventures and associates:
• the income statements for 2008 and 2007 at the
average rates of exchange for 2009 and 2008,
respectively; and
• the balance sheets at 31 December 2008 and
2007 at the prevailing rates of exchange on
31 December 2009 and 2008, respectively.
No adjustment has been made to the exchange
rates used to translate foreign currency denominated
assets and liabilities into the functional currencies of
any HSBC branches, subsidiaries, joint ventures or
associates. When reference is made to ‘constant
currency’ in tables or commentaries, comparative
data reported in the functional currencies of HSBC’s
operations have been translated at the appropriate
exchange rates applied in the current period on the
basis described above.
Underlying performance
The tables below compare HSBC’s underlying
performance in 2009 with 2008, and 2008 with 2007.
Equivalent tables are provided for each of HSBC’s
customer groups and geographical segments in their
respective sections below.
The foreign currency translation differences
were mainly due to the relative strengthening of the
US dollar compared with its value in 2008, and were
most significant in Europe due to the size of HSBC’s
operations in the UK.
The following acquisitions and disposals
affected both comparisons:
• the gain on sale of HSBC’s UK merchant
acquiring business to a joint venture 49 per cent
owned by the Group in June 2008 and the gain
on sale of the residual stake in June 2009;
• the disposal of seven French regional banking
subsidiaries in July 2008;
• the disposal of the stake in Financiera
Independencia S.A.B. de C.VB (‘Financiera
Independencia’) in Mexico in November 2008;
and
• the acquisition of PT Bank Ekonomi Raharja
Tbk (‘Bank Ekonomi’) in May 2009.