NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Aug. 8, 2003--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it removed from CreditWatch and affirmed its 'BB+' counterparty credit rating on Argonaut Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AGII) and its 'BBB+' counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on Argonaut's property/casualty insurance subsidiaries because of Argonaut's substantially improved capital position since the beginning of the year and the expectation of further improvement in the second half of 2003. Standard&Poor's also said that the outlook on all these companies is negative. "Underwriting results, which are benefiting from the improved pricing environment, are expected to improve further in the second half of 2003 and into 2004," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst John Iten. "The resulting surplus growth
