“While actual annual insured losses over the past five years have...
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Brazilian judge suspends Musk’s X platform for refusing to name a legal representative
Elon Musk X has clashed with de Moraes over its reluctance to...
South African Sanlam’s subsidiary Santam plans Asian expansion
We are looking at Asia and the Middle East from a reinsurance...
New Executive Committee to lead Aon forward
The Aon executive committee is now responsible for executing on the firm’s four-pronged Aon United Blueprint, which creates new sources of value for clients, delivers more effective client service, drives innovation at scale and ensures a unique and sustaining colleague experience.
Pfizer raises 2021 COVID-19 vaccine sales forecast to $33.5 billion
The company also said on Wednesday it could apply for an emergency use authorization for a potential booster dose as early as August, reiterating that a booster shot will likely be needed in the future. The raised sales forecast of the vaccine is based on signed deals for 2.1 billion doses, and the company could increase it if it signs additional contracts.
World faces shortage of merchant sailors to crew ships -study
The Delta variant of the coronavirus has hit hard in parts of Asia and prompted many nations to cut off land access for sailors. That’s left captains unable to rotate weary crews and about 100,000 seafarers stranded at sea beyond their stints, in a flashback to 2020 and the height of lockdowns when over 200,000 merchant sailors were stuck on ships. read more
COVID-19 infections rise, Delta variant spreads to 132 countries: WHO
An average of around 540 000 cases was reported globally each day over the past week as compared to 490 000 cases reported daily the week before.
Of the four COVID-19 mutations that WHO has designated “variants of concern”, the UN agency said that the Alpha variant is present in 182 countries, Beta is in 131, Gamma in 81 and after reaching eight new countries in the past week, the Delta variant is now in 132 countries.
California expands state healthcare to undocumented residents 50 and up
But California is not the first state to provide comprehensive public medical benefits to its undocumented elderly population. Illinois last December became the first to extend state-funded healthcare coverage to all non-citizens age 65 and older whose immigration status had left them ineligible for Medicaid.
Newsom’s action builds on two earlier expansions of Medi-Cal – California’s version of the state-federal Medicaid system for the poor and disabled. They provided full-scale coverage to undocumented children, then to young adults until their 26th birthday regardless of immigration status beginning last year.
South Africa port operator declares Force Majueure over over cyber attack
The measure covers the Durban, Ngqura, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town harbors because of the effects of the July 22 attack, according to a notice Transnet sent to customers and seen by Bloomberg News.
The issues “continue to persist,” it said. Force majeure is an unanticipated or uncontrollable event that releases a company from fulfilling contractual obligations.”The disruption threatens to have a ripple effect on Africa’s most-industrialized economy, particularly as Transnet’s Durban port handles 60% of the nation’s shipments. The ports are also key to shippers from landlocked African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Regulators turn spotlight on company sustainability ratings
The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), which groups market regulators from the United States, Europe and Asia, recommended in a consultation paper on Monday that its members consider formally regulating an industry that has so far largely been left to its own devices.
This lack of regulation has prompted concerns among some investors, who say methods of calculating ESG ratings are opaque, and environmentalists, who fear “greenwashing” – or that companies might sometimes get an ESG rating they don’t deserve.
Gallagher drops plans to acquire certain Willis Towers Watson plc brokerage operations
In conjunction with the termination announcement, Gallagher plans to exercise the special optional redemption feature of its $650 million tranche of 10-year senior notes issued on May 20, 2021.
U.S. will not lift travel restrictions, citing Delta variant -White House
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Rochelle Walensky said on Thursday the seven-day average of new cases in the United States was up 53% over the previous week. The Delta variant, which was first found in India, now comprises more than 80% of new cases nationwide and has been detected in more than 90 countries. Psaki also cited the fact that last week, the CDC urged Americans to avoid travel to the United Kingdom, given a jump in cases.
Saudi Arabia threatens 3-year travel ban for citizens who visit “red list” states
“Anyone who is proven to be involved will be subject to legal accountability and heavy penalties upon their return, and will be banned from travel for three years,” the official said. Saudi Arabia has banned travel to or transit at a number of countries including Afghanistan, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates.