Latest S&P Headlines
All the headlines from our S&P Topic Page, ordered by recency.
S&P Lowers Ratings of Allied World After Acquisition by Fairfax; Outlook Stable
Jul 10 2017 // S&P Global Ratings lowered its long-term counterparty credit and senior debt ratings on Allied World Assurance Co. Holdings AG to ‘BBB-‘ from ‘BBB+’, following the completion of the...
Increase in P/C Insurers’ Losses in 2017 Will Again Be Driven by Auto: S&P
Jun 29 2017 // Private auto net incurred losses will increase by nearly 7 percent in 2017 to a new record of approximately $154 billion, reflecting elevated volume and costs of claims, according to a new S&P Global market...
Reinsurance Rates Continue to Soften with No End in Sight: S&P
Jun 23 2017 // The global reinsurance sector is poised for yet another full year of declining rates, ensuring that a hoped-for bottom of the current market cycle will remain elusive in 2017, Standard & Poor’s said in a new...
In ‘Classic’ Soft Market Battle, Brokers and Carriers Attack Each Other
Jun 14 2017 // Chief executive officers of property/casualty insurance carriers and insurance brokers called each other out last week for engaging in activities they said are “classic signs of a soft market.” During a session...
S&P Revises AIG Outlook to Negative Citing Commercial Lines Challenges
Jun 7 2017 // Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has revised its rating outlook to negative from stable for American International Group (AIG). The move came despite AIG recently hiring a new CEO, Brian Duperreault. At the same...
Rising Seas May Wipe Out Jersey Towns and Millions in AAA Bonds
May 26 2017 // Few parts of the U.S. are as exposed to the threats from climate change as Ocean County, New Jersey. It was here in Seaside Heights that Hurricane Sandy flooded an oceanfront amusement park, leaving an inundated roller...
Bermuda Re/Insurers Hit by Ogden Rate Change, Higher Nat Cats: S&P
May 12 2017 // A big change in the Ogden rate in the UK and higher natural catastrophe losses are dampening a wide range of Bermuda-based insurer and reinsurer results in the 2017 first quarter, Standard & Poor’s said in a new...
S&P Raises Ratings for Belgian Aviation Insurer Aviabel After AXIS Acquisition
Apr 7 2017 // S&P Global Ratings has raised its long-term counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on Aviabel Cie. Belge d’Assurances Aviation to “A” from “A-“, following the completion of its...
Ratings Agencies Uphold Their Ratings on AIG
Feb 17 2017 // Despite American International Group’s poor 2016 fourth quarter earnings performance, Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s both have affirmed the insurer’s ratings, with a few qualifiers slipped...
S&P: P/C Insurers Could See Potholes in 2017 as Earnings Outlook ‘Isn’t Too Pretty’
Feb 6 2017 // This year will be a turning point for the U.S. property/casualty (P/C) insurance sector, as rising claims outpace pricing and reserve releases materially decrease. But it will not be a “softer for longer” rate...
S&P Ratings Reacts to AIG’s Pending Q4 Reserve Charge
Jan 31 2017 // American International Group’s anticipated reserve charge has attracted the attention of Standard & Poor’s, which has downgraded certain ratings in light of the disclosure. S&P said it lowered...
U.S. P/C Insurance Earnings Picture ‘Isn’t Too Pretty,’ Says S&P
Jan 27 2017 // This year will be a turning point for the U.S. property/casualty (P/C) insurance sector, as rising claims outpace pricing and reserve releases materially decrease, but it will not be a “softer for longer” rate...
Obamacare Individual Market Profitability Outlook Improving, Says S&P
Dec 29 2016 // The Affordable Care Act (ACA) individual market has proven a tough nut to crack for U.S. health insurers, with the benefit of strong premium growth offset by persistent underwriting losses for most insurers. But 2016 is...
Insurtech to Become Part of Traditional Insurance Landscape: S&P Report
Nov 29 2016 // Insurtech has a complementary place in the traditional insurance world, despite remaining uncertainty in the industry about how it will function on a wide scale, Standard & Poor’s said in a new report. “We...
Reinsurers Welcome Rate Stabilization: S&P-PwC Bermuda Reinsurance Forum
Nov 18 2016 // North American reinsurers may soon see some rate stabilization after a prolonged period of declining premium rates, as they deal with a supply-demand imbalance that has weighed on returns, according to executives at the...
S&P: Few North Carolina Residents Hit Hardest by Matthew Have Flood Insurance
Oct 25 2016 // With historic flood levels in North Carolina receding in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, preliminary estimates show that only a sliver of commercial and residential properties in areas most impacted by the storm are...
Reinsurers’ Capital Likely to Remain Strong Despite Hurricane Matthew: S&P
Oct 7 2016 // While Hurricane Matthew has the potential to erode some of the global reinsurance sector’s excess capital, its overall capital position is not expected to deteriorate below the ‘AAA’ level, according to a...
S&P: Impact of August Floods on Credit for Affected Louisiana Parishes Will Differ
Sep 22 2016 // The 22 Louisiana parishes that were impacted by record flooding in August will experience varying degrees of economic and financial stress, according to S&P Global Ratings. This is because local governments all have...
Reinsurers’ Profits in Danger of Falling Below Their Cost of Capital: S&P
Sep 6 2016 // Reinsurers’ profits will soon drop below their cost of capital* and could remain there until the underwriting and/or investment cycles turn, according to Standard & Poor’s in a new report. S&P...
Banks Hike Caps on Directors’ Pay Hoping to Fend Off Lawsuits
Sep 2 2016 // Over the past two years, a growing number of U.S. banks has capped their directors’ earnings, but the ceilings are so high that they primarily serve to fend off potential shareholder litigation rather than control...
