Zurich has announced it will close its Leeds service centre by the end of 2003, resulting in 270 job losses.

A Zurich spokesperson said: "We have too many locations that carry out work. We need to try and amalgamate our work centres to reduce costs in such a competitive market."

Zurich's three other Leeds offices will not be affected by the closure.

Zurich has also announced plans to increase capacity in its Cardiff service centre.

A new service centre, which can accommodate up to 600 staff, will be built with financial assistance from the Welsh Development Agency, increasing staff numbers from the current 250-300.

The new service centre will open in the first quarter of 2004.

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