Munich Re swings to profit after sharp decline in disaster claims May 8, 2012 THE WORLD’S biggest reinsurer, Munich Re, swung back to profit in the first quarter, helped by damage claims far below those from devastating earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand a year earlier. Net profit after minorities was €780m (£630m) – a world away from the near €750m loss in the first quarter of 2011. Munich [...]
Meet the investment banker who gave insurance a whirl October 14, 2012 AFTER the chaos of last year, 2012 has so far been something of a relief to the insurance industry. A perfect storm of floods in Australia and Thailand, the Japanese tsunami and nuclear disaster and the earthquake in New Zealand made 2011 the second most expensive on record for the Lloyd’s of London market, and [...]
Investec cools on acquisitions as profit drops May 17, 2012 INVESTEC is not interested in any more acquisitions for now, managing director Bernard Kantor told City A.M. yesterday, after unveiling what he called “disappointing” results for the last year. The results were hit by higher-than-expected impairments in Australia due to flooding in Queensland, Kantor said. “You can’t be happy with these results, that’s clear,” he [...]
Honda doubles quarterly profit April 27, 2012 Honda posted a more than doubling in quarterly operating profit, as production recovered from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan last year, and it forecast a 38 percent rise in global sales in the year ahead as it makes up for lost time. The company, which has lagged a recovery from the effects of disasters [...]
Catastrophes cost economy £232bn in 2011 March 28, 2012 A YEAR of natural catastrophes and man–made disasters cost the worldwide economy over $370bn (£232bn) in 2011, according to new research from the insurer Swiss Re. It estimates that insurers will have to cover $116bn of this cost, up from their December forecast of $108bn. Japan’s earthquake, which caused over 19,000 deaths, accounted for more [...]
Lloyds of London takes £1.4bn hit from Thai floods February 14, 2012 Severe flooding in Thailand last year is set to cost the Lloyd’s of London insurance market $2.2bn (£1.3bn), with claims for the industry as a whole likely to reach $15-20bn. The final bill from the Thai floods may vary, but Lloyd’s is financially strong enough to cope, chief executive Richard Ward said. “Paying these claims [...]
Red Rose bank on HQ factor February 23, 2012 ENGLAND vs WALES ENGLAND coach Stuart Lancaster is banking on the Twickenham roar compensating for his team’s lack of caps in tomorrow’s Six Nations showdown with Wales. Lancaster has named the most inexperienced side in the tournament’s history for a match that represents the biggest test of his short tenure. His most seasoned player, Charlie [...]
The good, the bad and the average: the best and worst films to keep you out of the sun this week May 24, 2012 FILM MEN IN BLACK III Cert PG | By Chris Ward *** Men in Black III has a major problem to overcome before the opening credits even roll: it has been a decade since the last instalment – so why exactly does it exist? This time, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are up against [...]
Claims rise as takings triple for Swiss Re February 23, 2012 SWISS Re bucked the market trend and tripled its profit in 2011, despite a series of natural disasters that severely damaged the insurance industry. The firm beat expectations to record a full-year profit of $2.63bn (£1.68bn), compared with $863m in 2010. Swiss Re also announced plans to raise its dividend and said the current year [...]
RAPID RESPONSES February 16, 2012 Debt is soaring [Re: The real reasons why the UK is in trouble, Wednesday] Government spending has exceeded income for most years post WWII. There is a cycle which goes from growth, when tax receipts eventually catch up with spending, almost immediately followed by recession, when deficits return. The busts have been getting ever bigger [...]