A disclaimed audit and a £40m ice cream payout

The UK trading arm of the petroleum group moved from a £73.8m pre-tax loss to a £10m profit, as gross margin widened to £50.4m. The recovery occurred alongside the payroll doubling to £12.4m, with average headcount rising to 79. A notable shift in profitability on a £5.4bn top line.

This is the principal employment vehicle for Marsh's UK operations, operating as a primary service entity for staff costs. Turnover held flat at £1.01bn, but profit before tax slipped to £45m as pension costs more than tripled to £19m. A classic cost-centre profile where the margins reflect intra-group arrangements.

The British manufacturing arm of the Nestlé joint venture saw average headcount fall by 8% to 737, though total staff costs rose slightly to £30.4m. Operating profit nudged up 3% to £48.7m on a £332m top line. The period also saw the payment of a £40m dividend, exceeding the year's £30.5m net profit.

Another large service entity for the Marsh group, this one acting as the central procuring and property agent. Turnover grew 12% to £319m, but operating profit slipped to £13m as total staff costs rose by £21m. For an entity whose primary purpose is servicing the parent, the bottom line is largely a function of intra-group pricing.

The asset manager's non-trading subsidiary moved out of negative equity during the period, posting net assets of £9.5m. Turnover rose 16% to £126m, arriving alongside a modest £1.9m profit before tax after last year's break-even result. A quiet, administrative realignment process for the wider group.