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Asia Pacific
Citigroup in Japan
Mitsui Sumitomo CitiInsurance, the ¥6bn (US$48.5mn) joint venture established by Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance and the US-based Citigroup last year, commenced operations at the beginning of October to coincide with the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Europe
EU look at regulation of Lloyd’s market
A European Parliament committee will discuss a draft report by an English MEP which accuses the British government of serious failures in its regulation of Lloyd’s. The upcoming debate is the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
North America/Bermuda
Allamerica to sell life and annuity businesses
Financial services company Allamerica is looking for a buyer for its life insurance and annuity businesses in an attempt to stop investors dumping its shares which have fallen from around $45 at the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Company profile: Mapfre Re
Spanish reinsurer Mapfre Re reported a pre-tax loss of €2.3mn (US$2.1mn) for its consolidated operations in 2001. This compared with a profit of €12.2mn for the previous year and reflected net losses of €16.1mn from the terrorist..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Company profile: Croatia Lloyd
Croatia Lloyd, the only professional reinsurer in Croatia, had another profitable year in 2001, reporting a pre-tax profit of HRK54.3mn (US$6.6mn), up by 28% on the previous year.
The company, which provides reinsurance for all classes of business..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Hannover Re Group
The diversified nature of Hannover Re’s four main business areas significantly reduced the impact of 11 September losses on the reinsurers’overall result in 2001.
The company’s property/casualty business generated a pre-tax loss of..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Norway
Market suffers net loss despite improved underwriting performance
Adverse stock market conditions impacted the operating result of the Norwegian nonlife insurance industry in 2001 but underlying underwriting profitability improved, according to..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
India gives go ahead to bancassurance
Indian banks can become corporate agents of insurance companies but they cannot act as independent brokers according to a recent ruling by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority. IRDA has long been mulling over the ‘independent..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Benefits of increased rates undone by asset impairment charges
The global reinsurance industry is under scrutiny like never before. Over the last few weeks there has been a rush of reports on the state of the industry a year after the disastrous events of 11 September. So much so, that this year’s..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Scor
Scor has announced plans to raise a further €400mn ($394mn) in a rights issue which will be voted on in an extraordinary general meeting on 5 November.
President and managing director Jacques Blondeau explained that the move was designed to..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Poland to combat motor fraud with database
Car insurance fraud in Poland is at its highest level for some years according to market leader, Powszechny Zakad Ubezpieczeñ (PZU). PZU’s deputy claims director, Jerzy Cywoniuk, said corrupt garage operators, who collude with vehicle..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Regulator blocks take over of Fortis France
There is speculation that Fortis Assurances (France), the French life subsidiary of the Belgian-Dutch Fortis group, may need to be recapitalised after the French economy and finance ministry, following advice from the country’s insurance..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Skandia
Skandia Insurance will boost the capital its US subsidiary American Skandia by $255mn. Some $120mn of this will be raised through a rights issue. The rest of the funds will be obtained through intra group convertible loans.
The purpose of the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Generali
The new president of Assicurazioni Generali, Antoine Bernheim, is expected to concentrate on the group’s core businesses. Generali is therefore unlikely to make any aquisitions in the near future. This is despite Mr Bernheim’s purchases..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Munich Re
Munich Re is increasing the capital of its US subsidiary American Re by approximately $1.4bn. The measure was first announced in July of this year. The funds will come out of Munich Re’s existing resources.
The additional capital is needed..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
South Korean companies cut motor premium rates
South Korean general insurers will cut premiums on motor insurance by between 1% and 6.2%, the Financial Supervisory Service has announced. FSS said that 11 of the country’s 14 general insurers including LG, Hyundai and Samsung will cut their..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Low sales force change in US annuity market
Faced with declining sales of annuity products laden with hundreds of costly investment options, the nearly $830bn variable annuity market into US may undergo major changes, including the possible exit of several providers.
Two recent items..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
South Korean market
South Korea's insurers are increasing their investments outside the country as domestic investments are rendered less attractive by the decline in interest rates and the weakening of the local stock market.
The Korea Life Insurance Association said..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Why toxic mould is not the next asbestos
Toxic mould is caused by the incorrect handling of water damage, which results in mould growth, and an associated hazard to health. In the US, toxic mould and mildew are an increasing concern for the insurance industry, with the number of claims..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
17–30 September 2002
Late Reports
13.9, explosion, fatality
Ethiopia: an explosion in the two-storey Tigray Hotel in the busy Piazza district in Addis Ababa killed one woman and injured 37 people. Media reports first said that the blast was caused by an explosive..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
World insurance stock prices
Company/group
Currency
31/12/01
19/9/02
3/10/02
Change from 19/9/02 %
Capitalisation US$ mn
© World Insurance Report
Ace
US$
40.15
31.60
28.76
(9.0)
7,547
AIG
US$
79.40
57.50
54.62
(5.0)..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Company profile: Asian Re
Established in 1979 through an initiative of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Asian Re accepts reinsurance business from the insurance markets of member states and from other markets in the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Singapore implements new motor risk assessment system
Singapore’s General Insurance Association has introduced a new risk assessment system that rates motorists from high to low risk and which is intended to help insurance companies price their cover accordingly.
The idea behind the scheme is to..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
EU intermediaries
The European Union’s council of ministers has finally approved the Insurance Mediation Directive which is now likely to come into force in late 2004.
The new law is based on the proposals made in September 2000, and will replace the 1977..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Compulsory motor cover to come to Russia
With compulsory motor insurance due in July 2003, the Russian motor insurance market is set for a massive transformation.
The price war once evident in the market is over, and has been for some time, according to analysts. Roughly two years ago,..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
EC reveals aviation insurance plans
The European Commission has unveiled plans for an EU-wide aviation insurance regime. Transport Commissioner Loyola de Palacio wants to impose common, minimum standards of cover and to clarify third party liability issues. She was due to present her..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Caribbean to develop early warning system to mitigate impact of climate change
An Early Warning System (EWS) for detecting the effects of climate change which could help insurance companies, among other interest groups, better plan risk management strategies, is being developed in the Caribbean under a US$3.5mn programme..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Cost of insurance at centre of Irish political agenda
Mary Harney, Ireland’s deputy prime minister, has pledged to make reduction of insurance costs a high priority for the newly elected coalition government.
Addressing the Insurance Institute of Ireland, Ms Harney said the government would..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Concern as Chilean pension industry stands on the verge of momentous transformation
The initial 90-day period whereby members of Chile’s remaining seven private pension funds (known as AFPs) can choose between five types of investment options for their accumulated savings ends on 29 October.
This is the first-time in the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Russia to make critical changes to insurance law
The Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov last week signed the insurance industry bill that is intended to be the basis of legislation regulating the industry until 2007 – the increasingly likely date of Russia’s WTO entry, after which..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
698 - 11 October 2002
Europe
Le Mans Re
Le Mans Re, the French multi-line reinsurance company, which is majority owned by XL Capital, is expanding its casualty and engineering capacity for the 2003 underwriting year. French insurance group MMA has a 33% stake in Le Mans Re...
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
North America/Bermuda
Terrorism bill stalled by differences over legal liability question
Differences about the extent to which businesses would be liable for damages to third parties in the event of a terrorist attack on the scale of the World Trade Centre, held up the..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
World insurance stock prices
Company/group
Currency
31/12/01
3/10/02
17/10/02
Change from
3/10/02 %
Capitalisation US$ mn
* as at close 15th October
© World Insurance Report
Ace
US$
40.15
28.76
34.70
20.7
9,105
AIG
US$
79.40..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Company profile: Trenwick International
Bermuda-based Trenwick Group realigned the business written by its two London distribution platforms at the end of 2001. Treaty reinsurance for non-US ceding companies previously written by Trenwick International (TIL) was moved to Chartwell (now..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Axa
Axa, the biggest insurance group in France, had a difficult year in 2001. The company’s result was hit by a significant diminution in the value of its equity investments and by substantial losses arising from the 11 September terrorist attacks..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Kazakhstan: market expansion driven by voluntary insurance covers
The Kazakhstan insurance market grew by 70% to Tenge13.9bn (US$92mn) in 2001, according to the National Bank of Kazakhstan, the Central Asian republic’s insurance regulatory body. The bank says the market’s high growth rate was driven by..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Peru introduces export credit insurance
Peru’s Finance Development Corporation (Cofide) has launched an export credit insurance scheme. The scheme was first announced by the Peruvian government some months ago as part of a broad package of measures to encourage exports.
To this..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Rise in kidnappings poses problems for Argentine insurers
A rash of kidnappings in Argentina has brought new challenges for the country’s already beleaguered insurers.
More than 180 cases have rated police investigation so far this year. Many lesser crimes go unreported, especially cases of..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Terrorist cover
The General Insurance Association of Singapore (GIA) is in the process of submitting a report on the need for a terrorism reinsurance pool to support property insurers in Singapore. The report will call on the government to be the reinsurer of the..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Loss forecasts
Moody’s Investors Service’ latest forecast for Lloyd’s is that the market will suffer a loss of £2.4bn for the 2000 year of account and £2.6bn for the 2001 year of account. The rating agency points out that these figures..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Capital resources and the resurgence of the subscription market
The prospects of the Lloyd’s insurance market have improved significantly since November last year. Back then, the market had to face up, not only to its 11 September exposures, but also to the massive losses it had suffered during the 1998,..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
EU insurance support for airlines scrapped
The economic ministers’ council of the European Union has effectively signed the death warrant of the state guarantees accorded to airlines to cover third-party liability losses on the ground in the case of a terrorist attack.
The economic and..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Irish market results: operating loss despite steep rate increases
Steep rate increases last year helped Irish nonlife insurers to recover from the dire results of 2000, according to figures released recently by the Irish Insurance Federation (IIF). Their total underwriting loss shrank from €453mn to..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Allianz in China
An Allianz joint-venture in China has obtained a ‘preparation’ licence to establish a fund management company, Guotai Junan Allianz Fund Management Co.
The moves that led to the award of the licence were started eight years ago by..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
France to change medicial liability law to avoid crisis
The French government wants to make changes to the law to prevent insurers from withdrawing third-party liability cover for doctors, private hospitals, and clinics. The draft law is being submitted to interested parties for comment.
The crisis..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Improving strategic agility
As director of Performance Management for Fortis Health,
Cathy Jorgensen
has long argued for the importance of aligning financial decision-making with corporate strategy. She refers to the immense benefits that could be achieved with more frequent..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
India sets up committee to look into foreign investment
The Indian government has now set up a committee to determine if foreign players could be allowed to take up to a 49% stake in insurance joint ventures.
Foreign players have been desperate to have a bigger stake in Indian ventures but have been..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Asia
China takes hardline
China’s leading anti-corruption official has been appointed as the new chairman of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission. Wu Dingfu, formerly an official at the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the agency..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
27 September–9 October 2002
Late reports
27.9, sinking, fatalities
Senegal: about 970 people died when ferry Le Joola
(2,087 gt, built 1990), carrying nearly 1,034 people sank off the Gambian coast. Only 64 people are known to have survived. The ferry had been sailing from..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Company profile: Reasuransi Nasional Indonesia
Incorporated in 1994, Reasuransi Nasional is one of four domestic reinsurers operating in the Indonesian market.
The company is wholly owned by the state-owned insurer PT Asuransi Kredit Indonesia (ASKRINDO)
Nasional’s performance in 2001..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Tanzania: strong growth as public confidence in market returns
Tanzania’s insurance industry had a good year in 2001. The market was boosted through a combination of strong premium growth and a reduction in nonlife underwriting losses.
Gross written premiums for the overall insurance market grew by 12% to..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
St Paul Companies sells Argentine unit
Argentine health care service provider, Grupo Swiss Medical (GSM) last week signed an agreement with St Paul Multinational Holdings, to acquire all of St Paul’s local nonlife insurance business, St Paul Argentina Compañía de Seguros,..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Bolivia
Bolivian insurers are complaining about their fast vanishing profit margins on compulsory traffic accident insurance (SOAT) business. By the end of August 2002, the market’s written premium income for this class had reached only US$5.5mn..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Chilean insurers to better manage investment risks
Chile’s Insurance and Securities Superintendency (SVS) will from next month require that local insurers adopt a market risk assessment model for their investment portfolios, according to a statement made at the opening of the 9th International..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Medical indemnity insurers driven out of market by rise in claims
A crisis in health-related insurance is forcing many hospitals and clinics in Argentina to operate without liability/malpractice cover.
The latest problem facing the country’s once-vaunted health insurance system has been caused by a mass exit..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Indian health insurance set for rapid growth
The introduction last week of a cashless claim service by Indian health insurers is seen as a significant development for the market as it allows policy holders to obtain medical treatment at authorised hospitals without having to make a cash..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Hungary
The Hungarian insurers’ association (MABISZ) and the financial sector supervisory authority (PSZAF) are considering changes to the country’s insurance law to prepare for the forthcoming entry to the European Union.
The present focus is..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Gerling seeks capital ahead of Baden-Baden
The Gerling Group continues to look for an investor to inject capital into Gerling Global Re. There was speculation that if the group failed to do this before the reinsurers’ annual meeting in Baden-Baden this week, there was a danger that the..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002
Coping with earthquakes in Chile
‘A small earthquake in Chile’ is something of a journalistic catch phrase, but it does not change the fact that Chile is indeed prone to natural disasters, among them earthquakes. There are several fault lines along the 2,600 miles or so..
Online Published Date:
25 October 2002
Appeared in issue:
699 - 25 October 2002