AFP - Swiss banking giant UBS, hit hard by the subprime crisis, on Friday said it would break even or report a slight loss for its second quarter thanks to a substantial tax credit.

AP - Rates on 30-year mortgages, which had been rising for five straight weeks, posted a decline this week as signals from the Federal Reserve eased worries about imminent rate increases.

Reuters - An even gloomier scenario may be in store for an already ailing U.S. housing market if the overall economy slips into a recession, according to UBS Securities analysts.

AFP - The German bank IKB, which flirted with bankruptcy after the US subprime housing crisis erupted, posted Thursday an annual loss of just 24 million euros (38 million dollars) owing to a favourable tax effect, it said.

Reuters - New foreclosures almost quadrupled in Los Angeles and more than doubled in Miami in the second quarter from a year ago, with over $5 billion of mortgages turning sour in LA alone, real estate research firm PropertyShark.com said.

AFP - US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Wednesday that the US economy was enduring "a rough period" and warned that home foreclosures would likely remain high in the near future.