Fairfax Financial Holdings is maintaining its market hedges due to concerns about the global economic outlook and in spite of the recent turnaround in stock and bond prices, the insurer’s founder and chief executive said Friday. Prem Watsa, who made …
A bulletin from Munich Re names the “sovereign debt crisis in Europe and the USA, a sustained phase of low interest rates and heavy natural catastrophe burdens,” as well as general uncertainty in the re/insurance markets as posing “significant challenges …
Canadian insurers are looking at a bleak quarter of financial results due to a sharp drop in stock markets and bond yields, and analysts are staying cautious on the stocks even at rock-bottom valuations. Sun Life Financial , Canada’s No. …
Toronto-based Fairfax Financial, which raked in billions during the 2008 financial crisis by using market hedges, is once again a go-to stock for shaken investors. Although the company has been criticized by some for its opaqueness and complicated structure, its …
The UK-based Tawa plc, which specializes in insurance investments and services, posted a first half profit of $11 million, compared to $1.4 million in the same period of 2010. The Group’s earnings report also listed the following “highlights:” • Group …
Lloyd’s of London reported the largest first half loss in its 323 year history yesterday, Sept. 21 – £697 million, or over $1 billion. However, Lloyd’s Chief Financial Officer, Luke Savage, was relatively calm when he spoke with the IJ …
The size of the U.S. municipal bond market shrank to $2.89 trillion in the second quarter of 2011 from $2.91 trillion in the first quarter, Federal Reserve data showed Friday. It was the second quarterly contraction in a row, although …
Chinese Vice-Premier Li Keqiang said China will soon allow foreign investors to buy mainland securities using yuan up to an initial quota of 20 billion yuan ($3.1 billion), a move aimed at promoting international use of the Chinese currency. Li …
Insurers do not expect interest rates to rise materially in the next year or so, leading them to look for alternatives to improve returns and manage risk, the head of the world’s largest asset manager for insurance companies said Tuesday. …
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones is offering insurance companies $4.67 million in tax credits to invest in underserved communities. In a letter to company CEOs, Jones pushed for insurers to place a portion of the $4 trillion in investments they …
