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UBS optimistic about second quarter

Switzerland's biggest bank, UBS, says it will post at worst a small loss in the second quarter. Analysts had been expecting a loss of up to SFr5 billion ($4.88 billion).

The bank, that has been hit hard by the United States subprime crisis and is currently embroiled in a US tax evasion probe, said it would benefit from a SFr3 billion tax credit.

UBS said the credit would offset further investment banking losses.

“The results reflect positive contributions from global wealth management and business banking and from global asset management, offset by a loss in the investment bank,” UBS said on Friday.

With writedowns of $37 billion, UBS has been the European bank hardest-hit by the subprime crisis so far. But the bank said it had no need to raise new equity.

The forecast pushed UBS shares up when the stock exchange opened on Friday.

UBS will release its second-quarter results as planned on August 12.

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SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR