The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that HSBC Holdings PLC is selling its business in Argentina and booking a $1-billion (U.S.) loss on the deal, as it continues to shrink its once globe-spanning empire to focus on Asia. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says that HSBC is selling the business, which covers banking, asset management and insurance, to Argentina's fifth largest bank Grupo Financiero Galicia for $550-million (U.S.). HSBC has sought to simplify the sprawling lender to improve performance by exiting several markets in which it has under-performed, including France and Canada, where the British bank sold its unit to Royal Bank of Canada. HSBC's shares were flat in early trading in London, while its Hong Kong-listed shares gained 1.1 per cent. "Argentina has been a problematic market for HSBC in recent years given hyperinflation in the region and a sharp currency devaluation, which has resulted in significant earnings volatility for the business," said Gary Greenwood, analyst at Shore Capital. "Exiting Argentina also represents a further step in management's strategy to simplify the Group and concentrate resources on areas of the business where greater shareholder value can be created."