JAPAN’S LEADING LIFE ASSURERS NOW ALL BACK AT INVESTMENT GRADE

With Asahi Mutual Life’s restitution to the triple B credit rating level by rating agency Moody’s, all nine of Japan’s leading life assurers have regained investment grade, reports Nikkei . Moody’s rerated Asahi Baa3, the equivalent of triple B minus. Standard & Poor’s retains a rating of double B plus for Asahi, one rank below investment grade. Asahi has taken six years to return to investment grade, longer than its rivals. However, Nikkei noted it has done so without external assistance, through a withdrawal from group pensions, a reduction in staff numbers and the sale of its headquarters.