Updated 22:00 with links on reactions  Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – UBS shareholders meet today, 15 April, to approve the new governing board of the bank at the annual general meeting (AGM). Before the doors opened the bank had made a pre-announcement that first quarter 2009 losses amount to nearly CHF2 billion and that it will cut 8,700 jobs, for a global workforce that will be reduced to 67,500 in 2010. Nearly one-third of the bank’s employees are in Switzerland and 2,500 of the job cuts will be in Switzerland, with 1,200-1,500 of them through layoffs. UBS says it expects to cut costs by CHF3.5 to 4 billion by the end of 2010, compared to 2008 costs.

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