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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