Barclays will cut about 3,000 jobs this year as the industry grapples with tougher regulation and the impact of a spreading sovereign debt crisis on investment banking operations.

First-half profits at the bank fell by a third after a drop in bond trading activity at its investment bank and a charge to compensate customers who were mis-sold insurance undermined a big improvement in bad debt charges.

Weakness at Barclays Capital had continued into July, the bank said yesterday.

Group pretax profit for the six months to the end of June was 2.64 billion pounds (US$4.3 billion), down 33 percent from a year ago but above the average forecast of 2.4 billion pounds among analysts polled by the company.

Barclays Capital's half-year profit fell 9 percent on the year and revenue at the investment banking arm shed 11 percent to 6.26 billion pounds, led by a fall in fixed income revenue.

That drop was less steep than at most rivals, however, after revenue across the industry slumped in the second quarter due to the eurozone debt crisis. BarCap's income in the second quarter declined 14 percent from the previous quarter and first-half revenue from fixed income, currencies and commodities shed 20 percent from a year ago.

New CEO Bob Diamond, who built BarCap into a debt market powerhouse, said the bank had already cut 1,400 jobs in the first half and that the tally may rise to about 3,000 by the end of the year.