Swiss Re reports surprise deficit

Analysts had expected the firm to report a profit

Swiss Re, one of the biggest reinsurers in the world, has reported a surprise third-quarter loss, after being hit by the global financial crisis.

The firm reported a net lost of 304m Swiss francs ($263m, £164m) - analysts had been expecting a profit.

Shares in Swiss Re fell 6% in Tuesday morning trading in Zurich.

Swiss Re wrote down 572m Swiss francs on its investments and 289m Swiss francs on credit default swaps (CDS) for the quarter.

A CDS is a swap designed to transfer credit risk, in effect a form of financial insurance.

Swiss Re said it would suspend its share buy-back programme, but hoped to complete it by April 2010 if the situation on global financial markets improved.

The reinsurer maintained its forecast of a 10% earnings growth per share.

The company expects claims for hurricanes Ike and Gustav to reach $365m, which is a relatively modest figure in comparison with previous storms.