UBS CFO sees 'sluggish' European economies as credit loss expense flagged

ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS CFO Todd Tuckner said on Thursday that weak economic growth in Europe has hit companies as he revealed the bank faced a credit loss expense of about 150 million Swiss francs ($169.68 million) in its personal and corporate banking business during the fourth quarter.

"The (macro) environment in Switzerland is OK," Tuckner said, speaking at an event in London. "But some of the eurozone economies around it really have been sluggish."

"A lot of the Swiss corporates to whom we lend have export- import businesses and they're affected by the economies around them, so you know if Germany is sluggish in terms of growth then it's not unusual to see a bit higher credit loss expense."

"But it's exacerbated a bit by the Credit Suisse dynamic," he said, referring to the Swiss bank that collapsed last year, leading to UBS acquiring its long-term rival.



He made his remarks to explain the economic environment behind the credit loss expense of around 150 million Swiss francs, which he said the bank was expecting for the quarter.

($1 = 0.8840 Swiss francs)

Source: Investing.com