(Repeats to add link to Breakingviews)
* H1 pretax $14.1 bln vs f'cast $14.6 bln
* Revenue falls 7 percent to $34.4 billion
* To pay second interim div of $0.10 per share
* Shares down 3.4 pct (Adds detail, background)
By Steve Slater
LONDON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings Plc saidpretax profit rose 10 percent to $14.1 billion in the firsthalf, as its three-year cost-cutting plan started to pay off,but earnings fell short of expectations due to a fall inrevenue.
Its shares, which had spiked to a more than two month highthe previous trading session, were down 3.4 percent by 0843 GMTon Monday.
Europe's biggest bank's pretax profit was up from $12.7billion a year ago but fell short of the average $14.6 billionexpected by analysts, on the basis of figures from 14 banks andbrokerages polled by the company.
Revenue fell 7 percent to $34.4 billion as the bank saidwestern economic growth remained muted and growth in China andAsia slowed, while regulatory reforms added costs for banks.
HSBC is focused on cutting costs and restructuring measureswhich remain essential in an industry struggling to grow.
Stuart Gulliver, chief executive, said in a statement: "Bothreported and underlying profit before tax increased in the firsthalf. These results demonstrate that we have continued to makeprogress on delivering our strategy."
Gulliver, who is two and a half years into hiscost-reduction drive, had cut 46,000 jobs by May and sold orclosed 52 businesses. He is expected to continue to retreat fromcountries where HSBC lacks scale.
The bank said in May that employee numbers could fall tobetween 240,000 and 250,000 by 2016. Gulliver said at the timehe would redouble efforts to drive down costs and could cut14,000 more jobs as part of his push to lift profitability andstreamline the complex bank.
HSBC said it would pay a second interim dividend of $0.10per share, taking the total for the first half to $0.20, up 11percent on a year ago. (Editing by David Holmes)