UBS Reports $712M Q3 Loss, $4.4B in Writedowns

Subprime crisis costs bank $4 billion in writedown

By Jim O'Neill, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 30, 2007 8:36 AM CDT

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UBS Reports $712M Q3 Loss, $4.4B in Writedowns — The logo on the headquarters of the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) is seen in this Feb. 14, 2006 file photo. Losses linked to the collapsing market for U.S. subprime mortgages will force Swiss banker UBS to post a larger-than-expected loss in the third quarter. (AP Photo/Keystone, Martin Ruetschi,... (Associated Press)

The subprime mortgage mess claimed another casualty today: Zurich-based UBS reported its first quarterly loss in nearly five years, a $712 million hit that drove down share prices as much as 1.9%, reports Bloomberg. UBS reported $4.4 billion in losses and writedowns on mortgage securities. And more writedowns may be to come in the fourth quarter, the bank warned.

Investment losses, which surpassed the $3.7 billion estimated on Oct. 1, undercut record earnings at UBS's wealth management division, the world's biggest, Bloomberg notes. Merrill Lynch & Co., the only other Wall Street firm to report losses in the third quarter, last week reported $8.4 billion in writedowns. (More US economy stories.)

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