Latest Asia Headlines
All the headlines from our Asia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Singapore GIC, Qatar to Underwrite Part of Prudential’s Rights Offer
Mar 5 2010 // Singapore’s biggest sovereign wealth fund GIC and Qatar Holding LLC have committed to underwrite a significant portion of UK Prudential’s $20 billion rights issue. GIC is an existing shareholder, with a 0.5...
Ping An Sees No Impact on China Insurance from Prudential/AIG Deal
Mar 5 2010 // Ping An Insurance, China’s No. 2 insurer, said on Friday it was not concerned about a plan by Britain’s Prudential to buy the Asia assets of U.S. insurer AIG, the market leader among foreign insurers in...
Prudential and AIG Execs Selling AIA Deal to Asia Staff
Mar 4 2010 // The chief executives of Britain’s Prudential Plc and American International Group met employees of the two firms in Southeast Asia on Thursday, in a bid to address concerns about the insurance industry’s record...
Pru-AIG’s AIA Life Marriage Makes Strategic Sense But Carries Risks
Mar 1 2010 // Prudential Plc’s $35.5 billion offer for American International Group Inc.’s Asia business marries the UK insurer’s fast-growth strategy with AIA’s mature business profile — a logical,...
AIG to Sell ‘Crown Jewel’ Asian Life Unit to UK’s Prudential for $35.5 Billion
Feb 28 2010 // American International Group Inc. agreed to sell its Asian life insurance unit to Britain’s Prudential Plc for about $35.5 billion, in a deal that would help the U.S. government get back billions of its bailout...
A Recurrence of Recalls; ‘PIGS’ in a Poke; Lloyd’s Powers on; Haiti Now Faces Floods and Hurricanes
Feb 21 2010 // First Toyota, then Honda – who’s next? 2010 is not starting out as a good year for car companies. Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp. was already in the process of recalling approximately 8 million vehicles, due...
AMP Hints it May Improve AXA Asia Bid
Feb 18 2010 // Australia’s No.2 wealth manager AMP Ltd signaled on Thursday that it had room to improve its $11.6 billion bid for AXA Asia Pacific, but said it had yet to decide on its next move. AMP is in a bid battle with the...
AXA Asia-Pacific Returns to Profit; No Comments on Takeover Bids
Feb 17 2010 // Takeover target AXA Asia-Pacific’s promise of strong growth in 2010 prompted analysts to suggest suitors may consider raising their bids for the firm but top officials declined comment on the $12 billion...
Why AIG Omitted JP Morgan from Underwriters for Life Insurer IPO
Feb 12 2010 // American International Group Inc. turned down JPMorgan’s attempts to get in on the estimated $10 billion Hong Kong IPO of its Asian life insurance unit, sources involved with the deal said on Friday, in a snub partly...
Honda Adds 437,000 Cars to Global Faulty Air Bag Recall
Feb 11 2010 // Honda Motor Co. is adding 437,000 vehicles to its 15-month-old global recall for faulty air bags in the latest quality problem to hit a Japanese automaker. The company will replace the driver’s side air bag inflator...
Australia Competition Watchdog Concerned over NAB’s AXA Apac Bid
Feb 10 2010 // Australia’s competition watchdog raised concerns on Wednesday over National Australia Bank’s (NAB) $11.6 billion bid for fund manager AXA Asia Pacific, tipping the scales toward rival bidder AMP. NAB, already...
AMP to Consider Position on $11 Billion AXA Asia Deal
Feb 8 2010 // Australian wealth manager AMP Ltd has let its exclusive deal with French insurer AXA SA expire for a joint $11 billion buy of AXA Asia Pacific Holdings, paving the way for rival bidder National Australia Bank to start...
Best Assigns ‘A’ Ratings to Starr International Insurance (Asia)
Feb 3 2010 // A.M. Best Co. has assigned a financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and an issuer credit rating (ICR) of “a” to Hong Kong–based Starr International Insurance (Asia) Limited – both...
Ratings: RSA Canada, Korean Re, New India, Labuan Re, Al-Ahleia, Generali/Volksfuersorge, GCAN
Jan 28 2010 // A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the financial strength ratings (FSR) to ‘A’ (Excellent) from ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) to “a” from “a-” of Royal & Sun...
Asia Special Situation Acquisition Corp. Makes Insurance Company Buy
Jan 25 2010 // The Asia Special Situation Acquisition Corp. (ASSAC) announced that it has completed its business combination by the acquisition of one insurance company together with approximately $650 million of assets from two...
AXA Asia Pacific Profit Upgrade Stirs Talk of Higher Bid
Jan 21 2010 // Life insurer and fund manager AXA Asia-Pacific Holdings Ltd expects to report a forecast-beating profit for 2009, putting pressure on rival bidders to raise their offers in a $12 billion battle for the company. AXA...
Cargo Ship and Tanker Hijacked off Somali Coast
Jan 4 2010 // A cargo ship and a chemical tanker have both been hijacked by pirates in the perilous waters off the coast of Somalia, bringing to four the number of ships seized in the past week, officials said Saturday. The multiple...
Special Reuters Report: America’s Route to Recovery
Dec 29 2009 // When Bob Hagan was a boy in Youngstown, Ohio, people equated the coke dust they swept off their doorsteps each day with opportunity, for it came from the steel mills that built this city. After graduating from high school...
Ratings: NIPPONKOA, Russian Re, Lemma, Lakeside Re, Inter Hanover
Dec 18 2009 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating of “a” of Hong Kong-based NIPPONKOA Insurance Company (Asia) Limited, both with stable...
NAB Trumps AMP in $12 Billion Offer for AXA Asia-Pacific
Dec 17 2009 // National Australia Bank made a surprise trump bid for AXA Asia Pacific Holdings’ Australian and New Zealand units on Thursday, in a cash deal that would value all the target firm at around $12 billion. The bid tops...
