HSBC has reported a 23 per cent surge in pre-tax profits for the first half of the year, with a billion-dollar share buyback programme initialised - though that was materially smaller than most experts had anticipated.The Trades Union Congress (TUC) have reacted to high profit reports from HSBC and the wider banking industry by calling on the government to tax those businesses accordingly.Richard Hunter, head of markets at interactive investor, noted that a $1bn share buyback for HSBC was in contrast to “general estimates of $2 billion and even some punchier speculation of £3 billion” ahead of the earnings call, but that strong growth put profits before tax ahead of expectation too.An increased focus on wealth development, especially in some Asian nations, is seen as key for HSBC to maintain its growth trajectory.However, Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, warned that increased bank profits overall would only up the expectation on the new prime minister to put a big profits tax on heavyweight financial institutions.“HSBC announced a second dividend for this year and a share buyback of $1bn, to be completed in the next 3 months. The share price has risen by 10% in the past month, and a lot of good news may already be priced in,” she said.“The share price slipped in overnight trading in the US, and HSBC could be a victim of its own success. There is political pressure on PM Andy Burnham to tax banks more, and HSBC’s results and high profit levels could add to calls for a higher levy on the sector, which could act as a counterweight to banking stocks later on Tuesday.”And the TUC demanded some of those taxes go toward lowering energy bills for those most at risk in the UK.“The TUC is today calling for the government to increase taxes on banks to bring down energy bills as the big four banks rake in £29bn in total profit in the first half of the year,” a statement read.“The union body wants the government to use the money to pay for a social tariff that brings down energy bills by up to £559 a year for those on low and middle incomes.“Currently the bank surcharge is an additional 3% corporation tax on the profits of banking companies above £100 million, which was reduced from 8% in April 2023 by the Conservatives – just as bumper profits kicked in alongside higher interest rates.“The TUC is calling for the government to increase the surcharge to raise up to £60 billion over the next four years.”HSBC’s interim results revealed a 3.7 billion dollar (£2.75 billion) rise in profit before tax to 19.5 billion dollars (£14.5 billion) compared with the same period last year.The bank attributed this growth to higher net interest income and increased fee income, particularly from wealth management and banking services. These gains were partially offset by higher expected credit losses and increased operating expenses.HSBC also set a second ​interim dividend of $0.1 per ​share, following a $0.1 ⁠payout in May. The bank's Hong Kong-listed shares gained 0.8 per cent to HK$169.5 after the earnings release, hitting a new high.The bank attributed this growth to higher net interest income and increased fee income, particularly from wealth management and banking services (PA Archive)Group chief executive Georges Elhedery said: “HSBC is becoming the stronger bank we set out to build. We are executing our strategic priorities with pace, precision and discipline.“This is allowing our four businesses to focus on their core strengths, grow, work together more effectively and deepen customer relationships. The result is a bank capable of achieving more.”HSBC's solid performance reflects the ​payoff of its Asian focus, where an overhaul targeting wealth and cross-border banking drove ​fee income growth alongside a favourable rate backdrop.It also caps a strong earnings season for Europe's big banks, which have extended a more than two-year-long recovery thanks to a surge in trading activity ​and resilient interest income despite dips in central bank rates.HSBC lifted its guidance ​for net interest income for this year, saying it now expects to exceed $46 billion, having previously ‌said it ⁠would hit that level.The half-year update from ​HSBC showed CEO Georges Elhedery continuing his strategy of streamlining ​the lender ⁠by exiting markets where it lacks scale, as the bank sold its Singapore insurance, Egypt retail banking and Australian mortgage businesses.Wealth revenue in the first half grew 18 per cent from ⁠a year ​ago, backed by strong growth from its Asian ​markets.Additional reporting by PA