The US based IIHS, a safety research arm of the insurance industry,...
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At least 50 hurt as LATAM’s Boeing 787 to Auckland ‘just dropped’ mid-flight
The cause of the apparent sudden change in trajectory of LATAM 800...
Life expectancy dropped by 1.6 years during pandemic, reversing past progress: Lancet study
The study found that life expectancy declined in 84 per cent of...
Peak Re raises $250 million of capital, to boost reinsurance capacity
Commenting on the transaction, Franz Josef Hahn, Chief Executive Officer of Peak Re, said, “The transaction marks a significant milestone for Peak Re. The Securities will enable the company to diversify its capital structure, and bring additional capacity to the reinsurance market from international investors. Our business has shown resilience to the current pandemic, and with the hardening of the reinsurance market, the new capital will enable Peak Re to capture the growth opportunity ahead.”
UK study finds evidence of waning antibody immunity to COVID-19 over time
Those whose COVID-19 was confirmed with a gold standard PCR test had a less pronounced decline in antibodies, compared to people who had been asymptomatic and unaware of their original infection.
Global foreign direct investment halved in first six months of 2020 – U.N
“Global FDI flows for the first half of this year went down by close to half… It was more drastic than we expected for the whole year,” James Zhan, director of UNCTAD’s investment and enterprise division, told a news conference.
The flows are expected to decline by 30 to 40% this year and “moderately” in 2021, by 5 to 10%, Zhan said.
EU warns not enough COVID vaccines for all in Europe until 2022
Given a likely limited supply, the Commission has for months urged EU governments to devise vaccination plans that would prioritise vulnerable and essential groups, such as healthcare workers, the elderly or people with chronic diseases.
But apart from a consensus on inoculating doctors and nurses, “there is no common line on other groups,” the Commission official said at the internal meeting this week.
Arctic headache for ship insurers as routes open up
As climate change opens new sea routes, experienced polar captains like Whatley are coveted for Arctic voyages that can save money on the run between Europe and Asia. But as activity in the Arctic’s waters picks up, insurance companies are grappling with a fundamental question: If something goes wrong, who pays?
So far, it’s unclear that the cost of a major accident would be completely covered by insurance. Damages from a ship spilling oil, hitting an iceberg or becoming marooned can run into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
Epidemic & Pandemic insurance contracts less ambiguous in Asia:Peak Re CEO
“Specifically, when you look at COVID-19, this part of the world is going through its fifth epidemic this century, and this century is only 20 years old. There are much less problems on the wordings side in respect of pandemics in Asia,” Franz-Josef Hahn, chief executive officer, Peak Re said.
Looking ahead to January 1, 2021 renewals,Hahn highlighted that the period represents a chance for reinsurers to “correct pricing” – a move he believes necessary for the development of a “sustainable” marketplace. Otherwise, [the marketplace] is not going to go any further and no capacity will be provided any longer,” .
UK Vaccine Taskforce Chair says early COVID-19 vaccines may be imperfect – The Lancet
“However, we do not know that we will ever have a vaccine at all. It is important to guard against complacency and over-optimism”, UK Vaccine Taskforce Chair Kate Bingham wrote in a piece published in The Lancet medical journal.
“The first generation of vaccines is likely to be imperfect, and we should be prepared that they might not prevent infection but rather reduce symptoms, and, even then, might not work for everyone or for long,” she added.
Novartis upbeat as drugmakers see hospitals coping with COVID
ZURICH: Novartis joined rivals Merck, Johnson & Johnson and Roche in predicting the worst of the pandemic may be over for drugmakers, amid signs healthcare systems have learned how to cope with surging infections without shutting down all services. The Swiss...
AIG to separate Life & Retirement business
”Peter S. Zaffino, AIG’s President & Global Chief Operating Officer, and CEO-elect, stated, “Across AIG, we have made significant progress executing on our strategy to deliver value for our clients, distribution partners, shareholders and other stakeholders. Our businesses can be further strengthened by separating Life & Retirement from AIG, which we believe will enable each entity to achieve a more appropriate and sustainable valuation.”
Sompo Asia strengthens its insurance pricing platform with Willis Towers Watson
These solutions enable insurers, distributors and managing agents the ability to capture all elements of the pricing process and analysis. This ranges from traditional rating structures through to complex pricing algorithms with embedded models that take advantage of machine learning methods, and implement them directly into the point-of-quote engine of the insurer. To date, the Radar solution is being used by 23 out of 25 of the world’s largest insurance groups.SOMPO, which already uses WTW’s liability calculation tools, will initially implement Emblem and Radar in Singapore, India, Malaysia and Indonesia, before cascading to its business operations in other markets across Asia.