S&P says bond insurance losses likely 20 pct higher

NEW YORK, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's on Thursday said it expects losses by bond insurers to be 20 percent higher than it had thought last month, after increasing its assumptions for losses from mortgage-related securities.

"The revised assumptions announced by the residential mortgage backed securities surveillance group reflect the growing economic consensus that U.S. home price declines will be larger than previously forecasted and that the U.S. housing market slump may last far longer than previously expected," S&P said in a statement.

(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)