HypoVereinsbank to Save €300 Million?

HypoVereinsbank, Germany's second-biggest bank, could save up to €300 million ($390 million) from the cost-cutting program it announced recently, sources close to the matter told AFP on Thursday. "Three-hundred million euros is in the realm of possibility," a source said. A spokeswoman for HypoVereinsbank (HVB) declined to comment on the figure, saying that the details of the cost-cutting program would be unveiled at the beginning of next year. A report in the monthly Manager Magazin said that up to 2,000 jobs could be on the line under the program which was scheduled to run until the end of 2006. HVB announced on Nov. 4 that it was considering a new cost-cutting round after already axing 12,000 jobs over the past two years. The bank employs around 60,000 people worldwide. (AFP)