The chief executive of Deutsche Bank, Josef Ackermann, has again played down prospects of a partnership with the embattled Swiss banking and wealth management group UBS, according to media reports.

"In this case, there would be a question of the headquarters location. Deutsche Bank wants to and will remain in Germany,” Mr Ackermann was quoted by Die Welt as saying.  

"Therefore, some considerations, as interesting as they may be in theory, do not come into question practically," he said.

Previously, Mr Ackermann has denied being interested in taking the top job at UBS.

Meanwhile, the extent of consolidation that Germany's banking sector is likely to see this year remains unclear, he said. Mr Ackermann also repeated that Germany's largest bank expected to make a profit in the second quarter and saw no need to raise fresh capital. He declined to give a forecast for 2008.

Asked if 2008 would be the year of reorganisation for the country's banks, Ackermann said: "You can't say, definitively, because the environment is difficult. But a consolidation certainly would be in Germany's interest."

Ackermann declined to comment on Deutsche Bank's interest in other German banks now weighing up possible partners, including Deutsche Postbank, Allianz's Dresdner Bank and Citigroup's German retail operations, repeating that for Deutsche Bank, acquisitions must be strategically sensible and create value for shareholders.

"As a global bank, we are not fixed on Germany when it comes to acquisitions," he said, noting that Deutsche this past week had announced the purchase of ABN Amro's Dutch operations from Belgian-Dutch financial services group Fortis.