HSBC 2011 Annual Report Download - page 11

9
Overview Operating & Financial Review Corporate Governance Financial Statements Shareholder Information
responsibility, improve decision making and reduce
bureaucracy. We have identified a strong pipeline of
further sustainable cost savings which we believe
will deliver at the upper end of our target of
US$2.5-3.5bn of sustainable savings by 2013.
Third, we continued to position the business for
growth, as outlined in the performance headlines.
We are increasing the intensity of strategy
execution in 2012 and will provide a further update
at our forthcoming Investor Strategy Day.
Our purpose and values
HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking
and financial services organisations. We serve
around 89 million customers and our network
covers 85 countries and territories. With around
7,200 offices in both established and faster-growing
markets, we aim to be where the growth is,
connecting customers to opportunities, enabling
businesses to thrive and economies to prosper, and
ultimately helping people to realise their ambitions.
We are putting a new emphasis on values at
HSBC, so that our employees are empowered to do
the right thing and to act with courageous integrity.
We recognise that we have not always got this right
in the past. The inappropriate advice given to
customers of NHFA Limited was completely
unacceptable. We are profoundly sorry about what
happened and are committed to standing fully behind
our customers. This case has reinforced our
determination to address legacy issues in HSBC.
Over the past year we have made our values
more explicit to ensure we meet the expectations of
society, customers, regulators and investors. Those
values are that we are dependable, open to different
ideas and cultures and connected to customers,
communities, regulators and each other. We are
ensuring that everyone who works for HSBC lives
by these values and have made them a key part of
every individual’s annual performance review. By
setting the highest standards of behaviour our aim is
that all of our employees and customers can be
proud of our business.
Outlook
In 2012, notwithstanding the macroeconomic,
regulatory and political uncertainties which we
believe will persist, we expect continued strong
growth in the dynamic markets of Asia, Latin
America and the Middle East, although at a more
moderate pace than in 2011, and that mainland
China will achieve a soft landing. We believe that
trade and capital flows between emerging areas of
the world will also continue to grow, and could
increase tenfold in the next 40 years.
As these results demonstrate, HSBC is well-
positioned in the faster-growing markets and across
international trade flows to benefit from these
engines of global growth.
In 2011 we generated a return on average
ordinary shareholders’ equity of 10.9% compared
with 9.5% in 2010. The strength of our position
gives us confidence that by the end of 2012 we will
have developed a clear trajectory towards meeting
our target of 12-15% by the end of 2013.
Finally, I am pleased to report we had good
results in January.
S T Gulliver, Group Chief Executive
27 February 2012