HSBC Bank Canada has taken a small provision for losses in its own portfolio of frozen commercial paper, but chief executive officer Lindsay Gordon says that, like other investors, it’s suffering from a lack of information.

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The latest data on home prices show that the downturn in the housing market is getting worse, rather than better, raising questions about consumers’ ability to keep propping up the economy. American consumers have taken a hit not just from falling home prices, but also rising energy prices and a wobbly stock market. A barrel of oil is almost $100 and gasoline price gouging for the November holidays has begun. Consumers are sick and tired of it. On top of that is a clear sign that home ownership does not guarantee equity or money in the bank.

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This past summer’s subprime meltdown involved about $900 billion in now-suspect securitized debt, reckless lending, and consumers who buckled under the weight of loans they couldn’t afford. Now another link in the consumer debt chain - credit cards - is starting to show signs of strain. And the fear that the $915 billion in U.S. credit card debt (an uncannily similar figure) may blow up has major financial institutions like Citigroup, American Express, and Bank of America strapping on their Kevlar vests.

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Global banking giant HSBC said Tuesday that it has sold some of its British credit card businesses to lender SAV Credit for about 385 million pounds (552 million euros, 796 million dollars). HSBC said in a statement that the units being sold are the Marbles and Beneficial divisions, which have about 338,000 accounts between them.

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As Knight Vinke looks firmly at HSBC, and as HSBC announced they want to sell their Marbles credit card operation, one must wonder about the logic. As our friends at Mortgage Blues recently pointed out HSBC and others would certainly concentrate on credit card operations. Here is why:

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