Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest bank, said third-quarter pretax profit was “significantly” higher than the year-earlier period as loan provisions declined.

Impairments declined in the third quarter to the lowest level since the first half of 2008, the London-based bank said in a statement today. Profit so far this year is higher than 2008 on an underlying basis that excludes movements in fair value on the bank’s debt, HSBC said.

“In the U.S., loan impairment charges in the consumer finance business in the third quarter were encouragingly lower than the run-rate in the first half of the year,” HSBC said.

HSBC posted $67 billion in provisions since the start of 2006, mostly in the U.S., following its acquisition of subprime lender Household International Inc. Chief Executive Officer Michael Geoghegan is relocating to Hong Kong from London in February as the bank reduces lending in the U.S. and focuses on faster-growth emerging markets including China, India and Brazil.

HSBC rose 2.8 percent to 711.3 pence as of 8:43 a.m. in London trading. The stock has gained 23 percent this year, for a market value of 124 billion pounds ($206 billion).

“I believe that the biggest jolt has now passed through the global economy,” Geoghegan said in today’s statement. “It is too early to claim victory, especially while unemployment is still rising in the West. The world will likely experience a two-speed recovery and emerging markets currently offer the brightest prospects for growth.”

HSBC closed its U.S. consumer finance unit in March and a month later raised $17.8 billion in a rights offering to shore up capital. The bank, like Barclays Plc and Standard Chartered Plc, hasn’t received money from the British government.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jon Menon in London at jmenon1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 10, 2009 03:44 EST