Lloyds of London is expected to reveal huge profits for 2002, less than 18 months after the World Trade Center catastrophe prompted renewed fears over the insurance market's long-term survival.

The turnaround will be measured in billions for Lloyds, which lost more than $3bn (€2.8bn) in 2001. Investment banks looking for work see scope for rationalisation among the quoted companies running Lloyds syndicates. The companies built up their underwriting capacity because individual Names have withdrawn from the market in the wake of bankruptcies in the past decade.