HSBC has cut staff bonuses after reporting a fall in annual profit and warning of a "bumpier" global financial outlook, thanks to China's slowing economy. Europe's biggest bank said adjusted pre-tax profit, which is an industry measure of underlying growth, slumped 7pc to $20.4bn (£14.4bn) in the year to the end of December, driven lower by higher losses on loans and rising wage costs. Reported profits, which include exceptional charges and other one-off costs, inched up 1pc to $18.9bn, compared with a year earlier. HSBC, which last week revealed it will keep its headquarters in London, unexpectedly announced a $1.3bn loss for the final quarter of 2015, compared with a $511m profit in the same period the previous year. The bank also said that chief executive Stuart Gulliver would take a pay cut, "reflecting the weaker financial performance of the group and the progress towards implementation of global standards during the year".