London-based banking giant HSBC will slash 30,000 jobs, even though it just reported profits of $11.5 billion for the first half of the year. The bank, Europe's biggest, has already pared 5,000 jobs worldwide, and plans to lop another 25,000 by 2013. The bank, which employs nearly 300,000, will sell 195 U.S. branches to First Niagara Financial and also plans to unload its U.S. credit card portfolio. Bloomberg News reported the lender is cutting costs by as much as $3.5 billion over the next two years as it tackles wage inflation in faster-growing economies and prepares for stricter capital rules.
