NU Online News Service, May 4, 4:18 p.m. EDT--Aon Corporation, the second-largest brokerage firm behind Marsh, reported an 18 percent boost in its quarterly profit, thanks to expense-cutting efforts that more than made up for a fall in revenues caused by softening prices and the ending of contingent fees.

The brokerage giant's profit for the 2005 first quarter was $200 million, up from $170 million one year ago.

"It's well understood that our industry continues to face a difficult revenue environment. But despite this, my colleagues at Aon are doing a terrific job of managing costs and those efforts led to our improved performance this quarter," Aon's recently appointed chief executive Gregory Case said. He told analysts during a conference call last week that reported expenses in the quarter fell $66 million from a year ago, "more than offsetting a $53 million decline in reported revenue."