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* HSBC, SocGen, Credit Agricole, Commerzbank report Q1
* Progress on restructuring key issue for all banks
* HSBC profit seen up 87 pct to $8.1 bln
* SocGen, C.Agricole profits seen down
By Steve Slater and Lionel Laurent
LONDON/PARIS, May 7 (Reuters) - HSBC is expected toalmost double first quarter profits to about $8 billion onTuesday helped by a fall in costs and bad debts and showing thebenefits of a three-year restructuring that is nearly complete.
The results will keep HSBC as one of the most profitable andmost strongly capitalised banks in the world although Europe'sbiggest bank still has more to do on costs.
HSBC, like many of its rivals in Europe and the UnitedStates, has had to cut back to recover from the financial crisisand cope with the harsher business environment and tighterregulation that has followed it.
The bank acted sooner more aggressively than many of itspeers, some of which are only now making cuts.
The bank's Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver has alreadyslashed $3.5 billion in annual expenses - 38,000 jobs have gone. The CEO has struck 52 deals to shed businesses that deliverlow profits or lack scale but is struggling to get costs tobelow a target of 52 percent of income.
HSBC's complexity, its unprofitability in many countries anda negative impact on income from low interest rates meanGulliver is likely to fall short of his cost/income target bythe end of this year.
He is due to update investors on strategy on May 15, whichis likely to include another $1 billion in savings.
Costs in the latest quarter are expected to drop to $9.6billion, from $10.4 billion a year ago, analysts forecast.
HSBC is expected to report a pretax profit of $8.1 billionfor the three months to the end of March, according to theconsensus forecast of 14 analysts provided by the company.
The latest quarter will benefit from more than $1 billion ofgains from a reclassification of its stake in Industrial Bank inChina and other exceptional items, analysts estimate.
EURO ZONE BANK TROUBLES
Cost-cutting and restructuring will also be the focus at atrio of euro zone banks - France's Societe Generale and Credit Agricole and Germany's Commerzbank - that also report first quarter results on Tuesday.
Unlike HSBC, which has offset weakness in Europe with stronggrowth in Asia, these banks are likely to show the impact of theeuro zone crisis more sharply.
SocGen and Credit Agricole, France's second and thirdbiggest banks, are expected to post profit falls, partly as aresult of record unemployment and weak growth in their homemarket.
SocGen's first quarter net profit is expected to drop 7.8percent to 675 million euros ($885.36 million), according to themean estimate of analyst forecasts compiled by Thomson ReutersI/B/E/S. Revenues are seen falling 16.8 percent to 5.26 billion.
Credit Agricole is expected to post a one-third fall inearnings to 674.6 million euros, according to Thomson ReutersI/B/E/S. Revenues are seen down 28 percent to 3.9 billion euros.
In Germany, Commerzbank has already said it continued tolose money in the first quarter due to restructuring chargeslinked to job cuts. Analysts estimate Germany's second biggestbank's loss at 125 million euros.
More details are expected on the bank's planned 2.5 billioneuro capital increase to repay some of its state bailout. Thiscould take place in mid-May and follows rival Deutsche Bank's 3 billion euros share sale last week.
