British life assurer Prudential has posted a 15% drop in half year operating profits, as expected, hit by falling equity markets and bond losses in the US.
Prudential, the UK's biggest insurer by market value, said it expected to inject £300m sterling of new capital into its US unit Jackson National Life which has suffered bond losses, including from collapsed telecoms giant WorldCom.
Like the rest of the European insurance sector, Prudential shares have been hit by concerns that tumbling stock markets are eroding insurance companies' reserves for paying claims and denting their ability to withstand further volatility.
Prudential reported an achieved operating profit - a standard industry measure that excludes net asset value - of £543m for the first half of this year, down from £642m a year earlier.
