LONDON (Reuters) — London-listed insurer Catlin Group said it expected to take a $200 million hit from hurricanes Ike and Gustav.

In a statement, Bermuda-based Catlin said the figure was based on an estimate that the two storms, which swept through the Gulf of Mexico in September, would cause a total insured loss of $15 billion.

Catlin also said it had made a negative investment return over the first nine months of the year, as financial market turmoil reduced the value of debt-backed securities it holds by $118 million.

The total investment return — the sum of investment income and changes in the value of investments held in the portfolio, divided by total assets — was minus 0.9 percent for the nine months to September 30, Catlin said.

Over the first six months of 2008, Catlin's net investment income fell 52 percent on the year to $54 million, hit by weak bond and equity markets, the company said in August.

Catlin said yesterday it had sufficient capital to exploit an anticipated cyclical upturn in insurance prices next year.

"Our investment in the business over the past few years leaves us well positioned to take advantage of the new opportunities," Chief Executive Stephen Catlin said.

Catlin said it has written down the value of an $11 million exposure to debt issued by failed investment bank Lehman Brothers to just $1 million, and added its exposure to troubled US insurer American International Group was "not material".