Author: Farkas Laura

The market is experiencing its first weekly drop in a month as it responds to AIG’s losses and its plan to raise $12.5 billion to cover losses, renewing concern on Wall Street that the worst of the credit crisis isn’t over. AIG tumbled to a two-month low after disclosing more than $15 billion in write-downs.… Continue reading Morning Edition: AIG’s Results and Companies Hit by High Oil Prices Impact Wall Street

American International Group Inc., the world’s biggest insurer by assets, reported its largest first-quarter net loss ever yesterday of $7.81 billion, compared with earnings of $4.13 billion a year earlier.     Additionally, the New York-based insurer disclosed more than $15 billion in pretax write-downs, prompting Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings to cut the… Continue reading AIG Needs to Raise $12.5B after Reporting Record Loss

In an effort to become more efficient, the largest US bank, Citigroup, stated today that its goal is to slim down and shed $400 billion of assets over the next two to three years.     Hit hard by the subprime mortgage meltdown and ensuing turmoil, Citi said it has about $500 billion of “legacy… Continue reading Citigroup Talks Selling $400B in Assets Over the Next Few Years

On Wednesday the Senate overwhelmingly rejected to expand the federal flood insurance program to also cover windstorm damage.       Lawmakers from Louisiana and Mississippi cited problems that occurred after Hurricane Katrina and other big 2005 storms when private insurers covering wind damage claimed that destruction to property resulted from flooding, thus shifting the burden… Continue reading Senate Rejects Adding Wind Coverage to Federal Program

Earlier today, Keith Hennessey, director of the White House National Economic Council and one of the administration’s top economic advisers, stated that differences between the White House and Democrats in Congress over proposed housing-market legislation aren’t “insurmountable”.    The comments by Mr. Hennessey seem to leave room for an eventual deal with lawmakers, despite a… Continue reading Dems and Republicans May be Able to Strike Housing-Market Legislation Deal

First-quarter profit rose 6.6 percent at Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc as lower expenses and tax gains made up for a drop in premiums and deposits, according to the insurer.     Industrial Alliance, which sells life insurance and manages mutual funds, said net income available to common shareholders was C$61.7 million, or… Continue reading Profit Up, Revenue Down for Industrial Alliance

The world’s second-biggest reinsurer, Munich Re, hit its goal goal of making up to 3.4 billion euros ($5.2 billion) in net profit despite a 19 percent decline in the first quarter, missing analysts’ estimates as falling equity prices and increasing price pressure.    Munich Re’s shares fell after release of the quarterly figures. Traders focused… Continue reading Munich Re’s Profits Down 19% for First Quarter

A national survey by EMPLOYERS, a leading Workers Compensation carrier, indicates that many small business decision-makers when purchasing a Workers Comp policy don’t fully understand how the coverage works, what they get for their premium payments, or why they continue coverage with a particular insurer.       EMPLOYERS’ survey found that a significant 14% of… Continue reading Survey Shows Small Businesses Buy Workers Comp without Understanding Ins and Out of Coverage

Gov. Marc Racicot, president of the American Insurance Association (AIA), today issued a statement regarding the findings of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study which found that adding wind coverage to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) would be challenging. Following is his statement:     “We agree with the GAO’s findings that dramatically expanding… Continue reading AIA Sees Eye-to-Eye with GAO Study on Impact of Adding Wind Coverage to NFIP

One of the world’s largest insurance brokerages, Marsh & McLennan Cos posted a first-quarter loss on Wednesday. The company’s profits were hit by a $425 million write-down of goodwill for its Kroll risk consulting and technology unit.     The net loss totaled $210 million, or 40 cents per share, and compared with a profit… Continue reading Marsh & McLennan Posts First-Quarter Loss on Kroll Write-down