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Asia Pacific
European insurers expand in China
UK insurer Prudential and Swedish insurer Skandia have both been granted licences to sell life insurance policies in Beijing. The licences are the first to be authorised for European insurers. Prudential, which is..
Online Published Date:
28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Europe
Churchill for sale?
Rumours have been circulating that Credit Suisse is considering a sale of its UK personal lines insurer, Churchill Insurance. Credit Suisse is thought to be interested in a sale to shore up some of the costs of its other..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
North America
UnumProvident fined
Disability insurer UnumProvident has been fined US$1mn for failures in its claims management processes in the late 1990s when the company was formed by the merger of Provident Companies and Unum Corporation. John Oxendine, the..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Travelers Property Casualty
The sixth largest p/c insurer in the US takes a $1.3bn after-tax charge to increase its asbestos reserves by 300% in 2002
Connecticut-based Travelers Property Casualty, which was spun off by Citigroup last year, saw its after-tax result slump from..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
QBE Insurance Group
A benign catastrophe claims experience in 2002 enabled the Australian group to produce a A$130bn underwriting profit
Australian insurance and reinsurance group QBE returned to profitability last year as a turnaround in the company’s..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
GIC can now invest in foreign government securities
The Indian reinsurer’s increased participation in the international subscription business forces rethink of rules
India’s state-owned General Insurance Corporation (GIC) has been allowed to invest some of its foreign premium receipts in..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Indian insurance market 2001–2
The market is still dominated by the state owned companies, but the private non-life insurers are making headway
Liberalisation of the Indian insurance sector gathered momentum in the year ending 31 March 2002 as the new private insurers gained a..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Allianz losses prompt rethink
Allianz shares closed the fortnight tracked by WIR
almost 5% down on the previous fortnight at €60.40, the lowest figure recorded by WIR
in six months (see chart) while its capitalisation stands at US$17bn. A set of eagerly awaited results..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Scor out of favour
Scor’s share price slumped to record lows after rating agency Moody’s described the year ahead as “transitional” for the group and reduced its financial strength rating one notch to Baa2, adding a negative outlook. The..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Life expands by 66%
But non-life sector doubles income
The Vietnamese non-life sector increased its premium income from 21% in 2001 to 42% in 2002, mainly due to the higher rates achieved in commercial lines business.
Against the background of 7% economic growth last..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Allianz’s first loss
Banking arm loses €1.28bn but new chairman commits to bancassurance
Departing Allianz management board chairman Henning Schulte-Noelle has announced a loss of €1,167mn (US$1.23bn) for 2002 – the first loss in the group’s..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Write downs affect €755mn Generali loss
Losses at the top end of forecasts but battle for insurer gains ground
Assicurazioni Generali recorded a net loss of €754.5mn (US$795mn) last year, which compares with a profit of €1.10bn in 2001.
The loss was at the higher end of the..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Buyers question insurers’ appetite for risk
Growing distrust between corporate risk managers and their insurers
Corporate risk managers are seriously questioning the willingness of insurers to accept risks and to pay claims. This was the view of several speakers at the European Insurance..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Rating agencies under fire
Conflict of interests could limit the effectiveness of financial strength ratings
There appears to be a growing dissatisfaction among reinsurers and reinsurance brokers with the big three rating agencies and their effectiveness at monitoring the..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Aviation risk management – the way forward
Regulatory bodies within the London insurance market have become increasingly concerned about the way in which insurance companies manage their risks. Although the introduction by Lloyd’s of the Realistic Disaster Scenario has provided a..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Middle East
UAE company launch
Aman, the United Arab Emirates’s new insurance and reinsurance company, officially launched recently, unveiling its corporate image. The launch followed formal approval from the Ministry of Economy and Commerce and the..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Africa
Top 20 Nigerian insurers by assets
Nigeria Reinsurance Corp has issued a list of the country’s top 20 insurers rated by assets in its latest company journal. Nicon Insurance Corp was the strongest insurer by assets with a total of N13.8bn..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
4–19 MARCH 2003
Late reports
1.3, crash, fatalities
Russia: 11 people were killed and a further two were hospitalised when their Let Aeronatical L410 (Turbolet) crashed in central Russia. The aircraft was carrying 25 people when it began to break up at an altitude..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Trenwick shares suspended
The New York Stock Exchange has taken steps to suspend the listing of the common stock of Bermudian insurance group Trenwick from 25 March in addition to preferred shares of its subsidiary LaSalle Re Holdings.
The NYSE had issued a warning several..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Markets stage recovery as start of war dispels investor indecision
Equity prices record their biggest unbroken rise since 1940, but insurers’ stocks still burdened by balance sheet problems
Global bourses marked one of the worst days in recent history on 12 March when a sudden exit from equities created new..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Region seen as prime target for terrorists
Fear that war in Iraq could increase exposures in tourism and energy sectors
Caribbean general insurers consider themselves peculiarly vulnerable to the changed world environment of increased risk and global competition.
Insurers point out that not..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Rowena Potter: managing director, financial services, S&P
Hard hit by underwriting and investment losses, the P&I clubs nevertheless remain the only viable option for shipowners
There are more than a few dark clouds gathering on the horizon for the marine protection and indemnity (P&I) market...
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
ING suffers accounting disparity
The company needs €13bn to meet GAAP accounting standards
The ING Group has been causing some consternation by announcing that it must make provisions of €13.1bn (US$13.8bn) for “goodwill impairments” in the version of its..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003
Will market integration overcome the problem of ageing populations?
Discriminatory tax treatment of contributions to foreign funds identified as the major obstacle to reform of system
According to opposing viewpoints, the European Parliament’s 12 March vote to approve liberalisation of occupational pension..
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28 March 2003
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710 - 28 March 2003