The acknowledgement has come from Sagicor chairman Terrence Martins, who said although the financial turmoil gripping the United States did not affect the group much in 2007 and so far this year, Sagicor could soon be feeling the pinch from the US economic slowdown which was expected to last throughout 2008.

Reporting on the company's performance for the financial year ending December 31, 2007, Martins said the American insurance subsidiary, Sagicor Life Insurance Company, did not reach its revenue targets for 2007. This, he revealed, affected the group's revenue target while the full cost
of operation was carried.

The revenue shortfall resulted from the long process of filing new products and establishing additional distribution, Martins said.

Sagicor General, the Caribbean property and casualty insurance subsidiary, also lagged in profits for
the year. Even though the subsidiary was profitable,
it "encountered some operational challenges . . . particularly in its Trinidad
and Tobago operations".

Nevertheless, Martins stressed, "Sagicor is in a strong financial position; to weather these financial storms we
will continue to focus on the fundamentals of efficiency
and cost containment, the acquisition of quality assets, adherence to strong corporate governance, and the delivery
of value to our customers".

Sagicor's total asset value was US$3.64 billion as
at December 31, 2007, an
increase of $286.42 million
on the 2006 performance.
(SR)