HONG KONG: HSBC Holdings' Asia business helped bolster its profit in the first half although the group's overall profit plummeted by 57 percent amid a sagging economy, the bank said yesterday in its 2009 interim result statement.

HSBC, Europe's largest bank by market value, generated most of its income from its home business, with the Europe business accounting for 59 percent of combined profits. The result marks a 9-percent growth from a year earlier.

The group's business from Asia, however, recorded double-digit growth as it continued to be the leading foreign bank on the Chinese mainland.