April 2009/2

Aon's revamp of its UK pension structure comes as the big three global brokers continue to target cost cutting measures within a difficult trading environment.

Rates for national US property-catastrophe reinsurance programmes rose by between 10 and 14 percent on a risk-adjusted basis at 1 April renewals, continuing the hardening trend seen in January’s renewals for catastrophe-exposed lines, according to broker

Texas-based Southwest Insurance Partners Inc (SWIP) has put on hold plans for a private offering to raise up to an additional $100mn in capital due to the uncertain economic outlook, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Global reinsurers' capital may have deteriorated by a further 10 percent in the first quarter of 2009 as stock markets continued to slide, according to Guy Carpenter (GC)’s head of business intelligence Chris Klein.

Hurricane forecasters from Colorado State University have lowered an early prediction of 14 named storms in the upcoming Atlantic season to 12.

Class of 2005 start-up Lancashire Holdings said last week it expects to benefit from a surge in demand for Gulf of Mexico (GOM) energy capacity in the second quarter, after deliberately holding back capacity in the first three months.

The momentum behind hardening in the airline insurance market has seen average lead hull and liability rate rises of 5 percent in 2009, according to a sector update from Aon.

US life insurers were handed a boost last week with reports that the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) is to be officially extended to the beleaguered sector.

New cat bond sponsor Assurant Inc has launched a $150mn US wind transaction, while Allianz has increased the size of its Blue Fin II cat bond to $180mn...

The European insurance and reinsurance federation, the CEA, has emphasised its support for re-considering Solvency II’s contentious group provision after the directive has been in place for three years.

Standard and Poor’s (S&P) has revised its outlook on French composite insurer Groupama to negative from stable, citing increased pressure on the company’s capital adequacy resulting from the sharp decline in market conditions.

Ratings agency Moody's has completed a hat-trick of negative agency actions against Warren Buffett-owned Berkshire Hathaway, by downgrading the financial strength ratings on its insurance subsidiaries from Aaa to Aa1.