UPDATE 1-MBT Financial slashes quarterly dividend

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Aug 28 (Reuters) - MBT Financial Corp (MBTF.O) slashed its quarterly dividend by 50 percent as it tries to conserve cash amid a weak U.S. economy.

The Monroe, Michigan-based bank holding company said the dividend of 9 cents a share will be paid on Oct. 15 to shareholders of record as of Sept. 25.

It had paid a dividend of 18 cents in the second quarter of this year.

"Although our capital ratios remain well above the regulatory minimums, our dividend payments exceeded our earnings for the last three quarters," Chief Executive H. Douglas Chaffin said in a statement.

Shares of MBT closed at $4.64 Thursday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Krishna Chaithanya in Bangalore; Editing by Deepak Kannan)