Arig

Arab Insurance Group ( Arig), Bahrain, the Arab world’s leading insurance firm, has reported a net loss for 1999 of US$98m, saying it was the first time it had dipped into the red since 1991. The loss compared with a small profit of $1.6m in 1998. The company attributed the loss to a spate of disasters, a tough market, and costs of $24.4m involved in ceasing business at its London-market subsidiary Arig UK (p13, this issue). The group’s aviation and marine books also suffered badly.