Nomura tempers cost cutting in Europe

Nomura will reduced its cost cutting for Europe, where it lost the most money last year.

Europe accounted for about 20 percent of Nomura's total costs for the year that ended March 31, while the U.S. represented another 12 percent, financial statements show. Excluding Japan, Asia accounted for 3.3 percent.

It still aims to derive almost half a billion dollars in planned savings from its cost cutting measures in Europe.

Nomura will pare about $450 million in costs in Europe and the Middle East, $210 million in the Americas and $340 million in Asia, including Japan, Nomura said in a presentation to investors in Tokyo.

About half of the cost cuts worldwide will be from trimming payrolls, with the rest coming from merging some operations, curtailing rental expenses and reducing investment in information technology, sources said.

In Europe, Nomura will cut jobs for managing directors and back-office staff. The brokerage will expand its fixed-income business globally and re-assign people from other divisions to join the unit.

Nomura will begin eliminating jobs in Europe this month and will fall most heavily in equity sales and trading and in investment banking.

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