February 2009/4

Swiss-headquartered Paris Re's hopes for reinsurance price hikes at the key 1/1 renewals were not fully realised as it reported only "meaningful increases" in loss-affected classes, while loss-free programmes were either flat or with “very moderate” increases.

Bermudian (re)insurer IPCRe saw its 2008 operating income fall by a relatively modest 19 percent to $258.7mn, compared to $317.9mn in 2007, as it revealed a loss ratio for the year of 40.2 percent.

Assicurazioni Generali, one of Europe's largest insurers, saw its financial strength ratings cut last week on concerns over the impact of the financial turmoil.

(Re)insurers Arch Capital Group and Montpelier Re joined the crowd of Bermudians posting poor fourth quarter 2008 results, as the dire investment conditions took their toll.

Shares in Berkshire Hathaway hit fresh 5-year lows last week as financial market turmoil took its toll on the company's stock holdings and shareholders speculated that...

Troubled US insurer Hartford Financial saw its shares lose almost half of their value last week, leading a slide in life insurer stocks over growing concerns about the sector’s exposure to variable annuities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd continued to swim against the tide of financial turmoil as it reported its best ever annual profits on the back of record investment gains.

A class action lawsuit filed on 12 February under the US Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) has potentially opened up a new avenue for Madoff-related losses in the insurance industry.

Goldman Sachs’ recommendation last week to short the highly-valued Amlin plc and go long in rival Catlin was criticised last week by Investec Securities’ insurance analyst, Tim Young.

The Lehman Brothers-induced ILS drought finally ended last week with the completion of Scor's $200mn Atlas V catastrophe bond, and news that Goldman Sachs is marketing the renewal of Chubb's East Lane III.

Swiss Re's share price plunged 19 percent last week as investors digested the replacement of the firm's CEO, the widely expected downgrade by Standard and Poor's and a poorly-received analysts' conference call with its board of directors.

The much-anticipated European industry-wide loss index has drawn closer to fruition with the Swiss incorporation of Perils AG, a firm established to aggregate European windstorm exposure and loss data.