Barclays post 10 per cent rise in pre-tax profits

Barclays has posted a 10 per cent rise in annual pre-tax profits to £3.54 billion, up from £3.23 billion in 2016.

The company had set aside £1.2 billion for litigation and conduct, including £700 million for payment protection insurance (PPI) but not new charges for the mis-selling scandal were brough.

It posted an attributed loss of £1.9 billion for the year against a profit of £1.6 billion in 2016 after taking a previously announced £1.2 billion writedown from the sale of Barclays Africa Group

Jes Staley, group chief executive of Barclays, said: "2017 was a year of considerable strategic progress for Barclays."

He added: "We have already started to see some of the benefits of our work in 2017.

"Group profit before tax increased 10 per cent year-on-year as a result of our team's focus on execution.

"Although we are only seven weeks into the first quarter, and it is too early to offer formal guidance, we are pleased with the start to the year, and in particular in the markets businesses in CIB (corporate investment banking),"