Latest Japan Headlines

All the headlines from our Japan Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Swiss Re Estimates Its Q4 Natural Catastrophe Claims to Hit US$1.0B

Jan 15 2019 // Swiss Re estimates it will pay claims of approximately $1.0 billion for natural catastrophes booked in the fourth quarter of 2018, with the largest generated from California wildfires and Hurricane Michael. These natural...

California Wildfires, Hurricane Michael Top List of 2018’s Costliest Natural Disasters: Munich Re

Jan 8 2019 // The costliest natural catastrophes occurred in the United States in 2018 with one of California’s devastating wildfires and Hurricane Michael topping the list, according to Munich Re. A report from Munich Re on last...

Japan Insurance Group MS&AD to Raise Stake in Swiss Re’s UK Unit ReAssure

Dec 21 2018 // Japanese insurance group MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings (MS&AD) has agreed to increase its minority stake in ReAssure, Swiss Re’s UK closed life book consolidator, by making an additional cash investment of...

Japan’s Post Holdings Buys 7% of Insurer Aflac

Dec 19 2018 // Japan Post Holdings Co. Ltd. on Wednesday said it will buy 7 percent of U.S. insurer Aflac Inc. for about $2.4 billion, as the postal and financial conglomerate seeks new profit-drivers to counter weak growth...

Charman Promoted to CEO, Sompo Holdings Overseas Insurance; Frudd Named Int’l CEO

Dec 19 2018 // Sompo International Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda-based specialty provider of property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, announced that John Charman, currently chairman of the board of directors and chief executive...

A Desire to Leave the World Better Than He Found It: Acts of Generosity from AIG’s Founder C.V. Starr

Dec 17 2018 // Cornelius Vander Starr had many identities, including American entrepreneur, successful businessman, salesman, fearless world traveler and business pioneer. As the founder of what is now American International Group, he...

AIG Executives Outline Path to Underwriting Profit in 2019

Nov 2 2018 // “We do see it coming. We expect that in 2019 we’re going to be in an underwriting profit position, not a great one, but a profit. And we’ll move from there to a great one.” So said Brian...

AIG Again Battered by Catastrophes But Reinsurance Lowers 3Q Net Loss

Oct 31 2018 // Catastrophe losses in Japan and North America pushed American International Group to a net loss of $1.3 billion for the third quarter of 2018, compared to a net loss of $1.7 billion in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted...

RMS Lists Top 10 ‘1-in-100-Year’ Events for Asia Pacific Region

Oct 30 2018 // The Asia Pacific region remains highly vulnerable to major catastrophes, RMS said, announcing a list of 10 “1-in-100-year” events possible in the vast area that includes the Pacific Ring of Fire and the largest...

AIG Estimates Q3 Catastrophe Losses Will Be $1.5 Billion

Oct 18 2018 // American International Group said it expects to report third quarter 2018 catastrophe losses of approximately $1.5 to $1.7 billion. These losses are largely from multiple events in Japan, including Typhoons Jebi and Trami,...

Natural Disasters in September Bring Costliest Damages to Date for 2018: Aon Report

Oct 11 2018 // Hurricane, flood, and earthquake damages made September the costliest month for natural catastrophes in 2018, according to a report from Aon’s Impact Forecasting team. September is typically the busiest month for...

Japanese Typhoons Put Downward Pressure on Creditworthiness of Insurers: S&P

Oct 4 2018 // The recent run of large natural disasters to hit Japan likely has put downward pressure on the creditworthiness of the nation’s three largest non-life insurance groups, according to S&P Global Ratings in a market...

Typhoon Trami Hammers Japan; Flights and Trains Canceled in Tokyo

Sep 30 2018 // Typhoon Trami is bringing Tokyo to a halt. East Japan Railway Co. suspended all train service in the Japanese capital on Sunday in preparation for the storm, which is hammering the southwest of the country. Flights were...

China’s Debt-Ridden Anbang Insurance Aims to Sell $200M of Japan Real Estate: Sources

Sep 26 2018 // Anbang Insurance Group Co. Ltd. aims to sell $200 million worth of Japanese real estate to bidders including Blackstone Group LP, about two years after buying them from the U.S. investment firm, two people with knowledge...

RMS Estimates Insured Losses from Typhoon Jebi Could Reach $5.5 Billion

Sep 14 2018 // The insured loss for Japan from Typhoon Jebi, which made landfall in Japan on Sept. 4, will be between USD$3 billion and $5.5billion (¥340 to ¥620billion), according to the global risk modeling firm RMS. Approximately 80...

Insured Losses from Typhoon Jebi Estimated at $2.3-$4.5 Billion: AIR

Sep 9 2018 // Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates that industry insured losses from Typhoo Jebi, which made landfall in Japan on Tuesday, Sept. 4, will be between $2.3 billion (JPY 257 billion) and $4.5 billion (JPY...

Rescues, Power Restoration Underway on Japan’s Northern Island Hit by Quake

Sep 6 2018 // Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido began to restore power after a strong earthquake overnight knocked out electricity throughout the entire prefecture of more than 5 million people. The magnitude 6.7 quake that hit...

Typhoon Jebi Hits Osaka in Japan, Leaving a Trail of Damage, Airport Closed

Sep 5 2018 // Regions around Osaka, Japan’s second biggest population center, struggled to recover from damage left by Typhoon Jebi, which left 10 people dead, hundreds of thousands of buildings without power and the area’s...

Typhoon Jebi Makes Landfall in Japan as Strongest Storm to Hit Country in 25 Years

Sep 4 2018 // Typhoon Jebi made landfall in western Japan on Tuesday, the strongest tropical cyclone to come ashore in Japan in 25 years, and has picked up speed as it bears down on one of Japan’s most densely populated areas. The...

South Korea Braces for Typhoon Soulik, While Typhoon Cimarron Aims at Japan

Aug 24 2018 // An approaching typhoon has whipped up strong winds, waves and heavy rain in southern South Korea, leaving one person missing and one injured, while another typhoon headed for western Japan on Thursday. Typhoon Soulik is...