Live Insurance News

The role of insurance in the economy

December 21, 2013 Note From The Editor

Insurance and economy go hand-in-hand Insurance has managed to attract a lot more attention from consumers in recent years than it had in the past. Many people are now conscious of how insurance affects their lives, but few people are aware of the connection that insurance has with the economy. Indeed, it is more common for people to be aware of how the economy affects the insurance businesses than vice versa. To say that insurance is the underpinning of the modern economy may seem like hyperbole. When put into perspective,…

Hurricane insurance losses from mammoth storm reaches billions

November 3, 2012 Julie Campbell

Sandy left a wide path of destruction in her wake when it slammed the U.S. North East. Although residents of the North Eastern United States had been hoping for the best, the hurricane insurance losses resulting from Sandy will likely hit the $5 billion mark and above. Insurers and others in the industry are already crunching the numbers from the “frankenstorm”. Even before beginning to perform these calculations, it was clear to the hurricane insurance industry that the numbers would run well into the billions. Fitch Rating, for example, said…

Insurance news after Sandy has stocks tripping and falling

November 3, 2012 Julie Campbell

Despite the solid report in October, the insurers dropped sharply in the markets. Whether you call it the Superstorm or the Frankenstorm, the impact of Sandy on insurance news has been a significant one, particularly considering the damage it had on the stocks of insurers at the start of November. The Dow Jones industrial average fell by 139 points as more information about Sandy’s costs was revealed. Of course, the falling stocks were not limited exclusively to insurance news, as many large companies – such as Verizon Communications – that…

Catastrophe bonds remain unaffected by Hurricane Sandy

November 1, 2012October 31, 2012 S.Vagus

Catastrophe bonds investors shrug off impact of natural disaster Catastrophe bonds are unlikely to be swayed by the impact of Hurricane Sandy, as investors show little concern for the storm’s impact on the U.S. and the global insurance industry. Though Hurricane Sandy is being considered one of the largest storms to ever impact the U.S., causing approximately $20 billion in damage according to early estimates, it may not be able to cause a panic amongst investors. Catastrophe bonds have yet to show any indication of negative impact from the storm,…

International insurance deal made by son of Asia’s richest man

October 22, 2012April 30, 2013

Richard Li, Hong Kong tycoon, has acquired three units of ING for $2.1 billion Younger son of the richest man in Asia, and businessman in his own right, Richard Li, is making international insurance news by purchasing three the coverage units of ING Hong Kong, Thailand, and Macau, in a cash acquisition of $2.14 billion in cash. The Dutch financial services firm has now advanced significantly toward paying off its bailout. ING has been taking dramatic steps in order to try to pay back its state bailout funds, and the…

Health insurance giant sees massive spike in quarterly profits

October 17, 2012October 17, 2012 H. Cutner

UnitedHealth has announced its Q3 results with a tremendous jump of 23 percent. The largest health insurance company in the United States, UnitedHealth Group Inc. has released a statement of its third quarter earnings, and has shown that the strength of its Medicaid and Medicare business growth has led to a boost of 23 percent in its profits. The report also indicated that the overall medical claims costs appeared to be primarily as predicted. The health insurance company, which is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, has now increased its forecasts for…

Insurance news from India shows the bill has a chance of passing

October 8, 2012April 30, 2013

Finance Minister of India, P. Chidambaram - Insurance News Headlines

Chidambaram has expressed his confidence about the success of the measure. Finance Minister of India, P. Chidambaram, has made insurance news by promising further reforms for the country and has expressed his confidence that the FDI bills for the insurance and pension industries will be passed by Parliament, in which he will soon hold an open dialogue with the country’s opposition parties. He did point out that there is still some debate and controversy over the topic. But at the same time, the Finance Minister feels that it will be…