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FROM BBC Today: Hurricane payouts hit UK deficit

Hurricane Katrina losses have hit UK insurers
Insurance payouts for Hurricane Katrina helped drag the UK's current account deficit to a record high of £10.2bn ($17.7bn) in the third quarter of 2005.
The Office for National Statistics(ONS) said the deficit is the biggest since records began in 1955.

The main reasons for the deterioration were the Katrina-related insurance claims and increased oil imports.

The deficit is equivalent to 3.4% of the UK's GDP, the highest level since the fourth quarter of 2004.

The insurance costs related to Katrina helped reduce the UK's usual surplus in services trade by £2.1bn compared to the second quarter of 2005.