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.)