Insurance stocks were getting close to meltdown this afternoon after stock markets kept diving to new lows.
Insurance stocks were close to meltdown this afternoon after stock markets kept diving to new lows.
Zurich Financial Services was down 32.3% to 4,750p after having set a new 52-week low yesterday at 6,000p.
But ZFS was not alone.
Royal & SunAlliance was down 10.7% to 148p, having set a 52-week low yesterday at 164p.
Axa continued to fall, despite attempts to reassure investors.
Its exposure to equities was 16% of invested assets at the end of last year and first half revenues, due to be revealed on 8 August, are expected to be 4% up. Operating earnings would show a "significant improvement" against the
first half of last year, the company said.
The general insurance side was likely to generate cash flows of more than Euros 10bn in the first half.
It insisted its solvency was still "adequate" and it was not being forced to sell equities.
The falls in London and Europe followed a dismal opening on Wall Street.
The market kicked off by losing 100 points after the banks Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase were yesterday embroiled in the Enron scandal and reports were received today of senior executives of Adelphia Communications being arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
Adelphia has declared bankruptcy.
