The long-term question is if they can get extra revenues out of these services. I'm not convinced.

All retail stocks have bounced. M&A activity is driving the market.

All the life insurers have got to get used to the fact they are no longer writing business at the same high margins they used to six or seven years ago, when they wrote a lot of with-profits business.

The emerging markets are where Europe was five to seven years ago.

This is no real surprise -- had been groomed to take over the job. What is more interesting is why Crosby has decided to go now. Maybe he felt it was time to go, or was it a case of giving it to Hornby now or else he would go somewhere else?

These (infrastructure) companies have a very consistent income stream, and they are borrowing money relatively cheaply at the moment.

The life insurers are finding that some of the new products they sell are not making anywhere near the margins their older products used to make.

You can't argue with 29 percent growth in worldwide new business.

If you look at the $65 billion figure and the market cap of about $200 billion, they're saying you could technically get back almost a third of the company by 2008.

I'm very surprised to hear they've done this. Maybe they're covering their own position should someone else come in and make a bid.